Egyptian FM delivers message from President Sisi to AU chair

CAIRO - 19 February 2023: Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shokry delivered Sunday a message from President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi to Comoros President Azali Assoumani, who has become chairman of the African Union (AU), as reported by Al Ahram newspaper.

Comoros assumed the leadership of the AU during the summit taking place on February 18-19, and is holding the position for a year.

The minister had met Wednesday with his Comorian counterpart Zahir Zu Al Kamal whereas he expressed Egypt's confidence in Comoros' leadership of the union. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the 42nd Ordinary Session of the Executive Council of the African Union in Addis Ababa.

The minister stressed that Egypt looks forward to coordination and joint work with Comoros under the umbrella of the African Union in light of the political, economic, and security challenges facing the continent.

The ministry's statement highlighted that the meeting also tackled bilateral relations, and building upon the meeting of the leaders of the two states on the sidelines of Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development in 2019.

Further, Minister Shokry invited Minister Zu Al Kamal to visit Egypt to hold talks on pushing forward cooperation in the economic, commercial, investment, and artistic fields. He also underlined that Egyptian firms can take part in the implementation of projects planned within Comoros 2030 development plan.

The minister equally suggested that Egypt can cooperate with Comoros in the fields of marine fishing, fisheries, as well as human capacity-building and knowledge transfer through the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development (EAPD), Al Azhar, and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

At the end of the meeting, the two ministers agreed on intensifying consultation and coordination with the aim of consolidating work under the umbrella of the African Union.