Written by: Badr Ahmed

Dr. Badr Abdel-Aty, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Egyptians Abroad, chaired the first session of the joint committee between Egypt and the Comoros on Sunday, May 24, in the presence of Dr. Abdel-Aziz Qansouh, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and from the Comorian side, Mr. Mohamed Mbaye, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Union of the Comoros, in the framework of the joint keenness to strengthen bilateral relations and advance cooperation frameworks between the two brotherly countries in various fields.

Signing of Memoranda of Understanding between Egypt and the Comoros

Minister Abdel-Aty emphasized the deep historical ties between Egypt and the Comoros, stressing Egypt's commitment to supporting the Comoros in various fields and the participation of Egyptian companies in implementing the "Emerging Comoros 2030" plan. He pointed to the importance of building on the cooperation achieved in vital sectors, most notably education, health, infrastructure, energy, and construction, stressing the importance of strengthening economic cooperation and increasing Egyptian investments in the Comoros, which contributes to achieving economic integration between the two countries. He also noted the readiness of Egyptian companies to contribute to enhancing the infrastructure and sports facilities in preparation for the Comoros hosting the "Indian Ocean Games" next year.

The Foreign Minister also stressed the need to continue joint work to increase the volume of economic and trade exchange between the two countries, and the importance of taking advantage of the facilities and opportunities provided by the COMESA group and the African Continental Free Trade Area to achieve this goal, pointing to the pivotal role of launching logistics zones in the two countries to facilitate the movement of trade and goods, expressing Egypt’s readiness to support Comorian efforts to achieve sustainable development, through the transfer of Egyptian expertise and capacity-building and training programs, through courses organized by the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development, in addition to educational grants provided by Al-Azhar Al-Sharif and the Ministry of Higher Education.

The Foreign Minister also reviewed the preparations underway for the Africa El Alamein Forum, scheduled to be held next month on the sidelines of the African Union's mid-year coordination summit.

Strengthening cooperation

For his part, Dr. Abdel Aziz Qansouh, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, stressed the keenness to enhance cooperation with the Union of the Comoros in the fields of higher education, scientific research and capacity building, noting the readiness of Egyptian educational institutions and universities to expand the fields of academic and scientific cooperation with the Comorian side, in a way that contributes to preparing and qualifying national cadres and supporting human development efforts, based on the experiences and capabilities that Egypt possesses in the fields of education, training and scientific research.

For his part, Mohamed Mbaye, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Union of the Comoros, expressed his country’s appreciation for the remarkable development of relations with Egypt, praising the support provided by Egypt to the Comoros in various developmental, educational and capacity-building fields, and stressing his country’s aspiration to build on the results of the work of the joint committee in a way that strengthens the bilateral partnership and achieves the aspirations of the two brotherly peoples towards more development and prosperity.

The committee's work witnessed the signing of a number of documents and memoranda of understanding, including a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of technical education, a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of higher education, and a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of diplomatic training, in addition to the signing of the minutes of the joint committee's work and the final statement, reflecting the keenness of both sides to establish an integrated institutional framework to advance bilateral cooperation in various fields.