President of the Swiss Confederation Ignazio Cassis launched the SwissCham Pavilion and the Swisstech exhibition on the Swiss cleantech sector on 7 November as part of the activities of the UN Conference of Parties on Climate Change (COP27) being held in Sharm El-Sheikh from 6 to 18 November.
The inauguration took place in the presence of representatives of the UN and the Egyptian government, members of SwissCham Egypt and its Board of Directors, along with representatives of the Swiss government and companies.
The inauguration was also attended by Swiss pioneer and Chairperson of the Solar Impulse Foundation Bertrand Piccard.
Piccard made headlines in 2016 when the Swiss solar aircraft, Solar Impulse 2, made a stop in Egypt before completing its first flight around the world.
SwissCham Egypt — the Swiss Egyptian Chamber of Commerce — is a non-profit organisation serving the interests of Swiss and Egyptian business relations. At the COP27, the SwissCham Pavilion showcases innovation in environmental preservation by the Swiss private sector.
Egypt is Switzerland’s largest export market in Africa, and Switzerland is Egypt’s 8th biggest source of foreign investment.
In his opening remarks at the inauguration, Cassis emphasised the increase of local production by Swiss companies operating in Egypt from the food and beverages to the pharma and industrial sectors, stimulating the development of a strong business community manifested in the newly established SwissCham Egypt.
The SwissCham Pavilion also features an exhibition on Swiss cleantech. Switzerland strongly promotes sustainability and consistently ranks among the top 20 countries on the Climate Change Performance Index.
President Cassis stated that, “more than ever, we are in need of practical solutions to reach our climate goals and reduce humankind’s environmental impact.”
He also emphasised that “Switzerland demonstrates that it is committed to this objective and that it is up to the task.”
“Our diversified and dynamic economy has a knack for finding effective solutions to complex problems; we have always encouraged innovation.”
Innovative cleantech solutions are not only devised by big multinational Swiss companies but also start-ups and strong small and medium enterprises that make up 99% of the Swiss private sector, driving the industry’s successful growth.
The Swisstech exhibition serves to highlight some of these ventures in cleantech, offering cutting-edge solutions in the areas of biodiversity, energy, mobility, waste, and water.
