In the field of commerce and trade, Egypt has traditionally been one of the most important trading partners of India in Africa, according to the Indian Ambassador to Egypt, Ajit Gupte on the occasion of the celebration of the 75th Republic Day of India.
“Our bilateral trade was approximately $6bn during fiscal year (FY) 2022/23, thereby making India Egypt’s sixth largest trading partner,” according to the Ambassador.
The Ambassador added that the bilateral trade has grown more than 5 times in the last ten years. The bilateral trade expanded by 75% to record an all-time high of $7.26bn in FY 2021/22.
He said that around 50 Indian companies have a combined investment exceeding $3.4bn in Egypt.
The Ambassador said that the Indian companies are operating in all major sectors of the Egyptian economy and several others are planning new investments, including in new areas such as Green Hydrogen.
“Technical cooperation and assistance has traditionally been a major part of our bilateral relationship. Since 2000, over 1600 Egyptian officials have benefited from ITEC and other programs like ICCR and IAFS scholarships. I am happy to note that we could re-convene some of the mechanisms for bilateral institutional dialogue like Foreign Office Consultation, Joint Trade Committee, Joint Business Council and several JWGs,” according to the Ambassador
“Today, India is filled with self-confidence and poised to emerge as the third largest economy in a few years and the leading player in many key technologies. I call upon all our Egyptian friends to come and be part of this journey for the benefit of people of both our countries,” the Ambassador stressed.
Defence cooperation has expanded significantly in the last two years
The Ambassador said that India-Egypt defence cooperation has expanded significantly in the last two years, with 45 defence delegations from India having visited Egypt.
He mentioned that armed Forces from both countries have participated in joint defence exercises with growing frequency.
“Since 2021, our Air Forces have conducted three joint exercises, which is unprecedented. India participated for the first time ever in Egypt’s Biannual Multinational Military Exercise ‘Bright Star-23’ in September 2023 with participation by contingents from the Indian Air Force, Army and Navy. In fact, it was after many decades that a contingent from the Indian Army visited Egypt to participate in a joint exercise. During the last couple of years, Indian Navy ships have made 17 port calls and conducted ‘PASSEX’ with the Egyptian Navy,” according to the Ambassador.
Indian diaspora
The Ambassador mentioned that the Indian diaspora of about 4000 has significantly contributed to the Egyptian economy and is mostly involved in trade and manufacturing.
He pointed out that there are about 976 Indian students studying at Al Azhar University, Ain Shams Medical University and Cairo University.
“The ‘Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture’ (MACIC) has been promoting cultural cooperation between the two countries through regular activities such as Hindi, Urdu and Yoga and Kathak classes; Seminars; film shows; exhibitions and participation in local cultural activities. MACIC has been organizing the ‟Glimpses of India” painting competition for Egyptian children for the last 25 years. I am happy to share that the 27th edition of the event was held in December 2023, across seven Governorates in Egypt with the participation of over 11,500 students,” he said.
Political leadership of both countries has consistently nurtured friendship between the two countries
Ambassador Gupte referred to President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s 2nd State Visit to India from 24-27 January 2023 as the Chief Guest for India’s 74th Republic Day celebrations. This was the first time ever that the President of Egypt was visiting India as Chief Guest for Republic Day.
“Within a short span of less than 6 months, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi paid his first-ever State Visit to Egypt from 24-25 June 2023,” he continued.
The Indian Ambassador stressed that Prime Minister Modi and President Sisi discussed ways to further deepen bilateral cooperation as envisioned in the ‘Strategic Partnership Agreement’ signed during the visit.
“One of the highlights of the visit was the bestowal of Egypt’s highest civilian honour the “Order of the Nile” on PM Modi by President Sisi. President Sisi visited India for the second time in 2023 to participate in the ‘G20 New Delhi Summit’ from 09-10 September 2023. Egypt’s PM Mostafa Madbouly and FM Sameh Shoukry, also participated virtually in the “Voice of the Global South Summit”, organized by India on 17 November 2023. The year 2023 was a very active year, as it witnessed about 11 Ministerial visits from Egypt to India,” according to the Ambassador.
The Ambassador ensured that the political leadership of both countries has consistently nurtured friendship between the two countries.
“Although there was a brief gap in physical interaction due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Ministerial visits resumed with the visit of India’s Defence Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh to Egypt from 18-21 September 2022. This was soon followed by the visit of External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar to Egypt from 14-16 October 2022. Minister of Environment, Forests & Climate Change, Shri Bhupendra Yadav also led a senior Indian delegation for CoP-27 at Sharm El-Sheikh in November 2022. All these Ministerial visits laid the foundation for the unprecedented momentum in India-Egypt bilateral relations witnessed in 2023,” he continued.
The Ambassador mentioned that India and Egypt, two of the world’s oldest civilizations, have always enjoyed a history of close contact from ancient times.
“Ashoka’s edicts refer to his relations with Egypt under Ptolemy II in the 3rd century B.C. In modern times, Mahatma Gandhi and Saad Zaghloul shared common goals on the independence of their countries. The exceptionally close friendship between President Gamal Abdel Nasser and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru led to a Friendship Treaty between the two countries in 1955,” according to the Ambassador.
He stressed that India and Egypt share close political understanding, based on a long history of interaction and close cooperation in bilateral, regional and global issues,
“Both countries, inspired by their civilizational values, espoused the ideals of right to self-determination, anti-colonialism, national independence and peaceful co-existence that were indeed the founding principles of the ‘Non-Aligned Movement’,” he concluded.
The celebration was attended by Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications & Information Technology, Ali El Moseilhy, Minister of Supply & Internal Trade, and various ambassadors.
