Han-Maurits Schaapveld — The Netherlands’ Ambassador to Cairo and the EU’s Gender Champion — said that Egypt and the Netherlands enjoy a strong partnership, expressing his confidence that relations between the two countries will continue to grow and flourish in the future.
He added that the Netherlands’ government would like to see its bonds with Egypt become even stronger.
“We are working on creating more financial incentives and opportunities for Dutch expertise to be shared with Egypt and for Dutch-Egyptian projects to be implemented here. We will also continue to support Dutch companies who want to expand their presence here and increase the already sizeable Dutch investments in Egypt,” Schaapveld said.
“Through our enhanced support, we hope to assist Egypt in its journey towards a green sustainable inclusive society and a trade partner with equal opportunities for all its inhabitants.”
Schaapveld’s remarks came on the side-lines of an event organised by the Embassy of the Netherlands on Tuesday to celebrate King’s Day. Senior Egyptian officials and influential figures, along with the diplomatic community were in attendance.
The Ambassador expressed his gratitude to finally be able to celebrate the King’s Day in Egypt, since the COVID-19 pandemic is now receding.
“I, in my two years here, worked closely with Egypt on different issues, especially the gender file. Following the priority given by the Egyptian government to improve not only women’s rights but also their living and working conditions.”
He also mentioned that Egypt and the Netherlands’ cooperation on water management, irrigation, agriculture, and delta works span the 20th and 21st century.
“We will continue to work together with Egypt in the fields of water, sustainable agriculture, and food security, and mutually share our know how in these fields. The Netherlands stands ready with its expertise to help showcase Egyptian achievements in this field at the COP27 that will be held in Sharm El-Sheikh this November,” he added.
Talking about Egypt’s National Human Rights strategy, the ambassador noted that it is the first step in a long journey and that the Netherlands is “looking forward to seeing the strategy implemented on the ground.”
He added that his country is also aware of Egypt’s efforts to formulate the Egyptian National Human Rights strategy, mentioning that this strategy shows that the Egyptian government has the will to address and improve the situation.
