Egypt ready to support Sahel countries' counterterrorism efforts: FM

CAIRO – 30 October 2024: Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration Badr Abdel Aty received Wednesday his Nigerien counterpart Bakary Yaou Sangaré holding a joint press conference afterwards.

Minister Abdel Aty expressed support to Niger's counterterrorism efforts, as well as measures taken to deal with the disastrous impact of the floods that hit the country last month causing the death of 339 and displacement of 1.1 million.

The minister expressed Egypt's readiness to provide training and equipment to Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Gabon to repel terrorist groups. That is why the talks included the capacity-building of security personnel in the field of combating terrorism. In that framework, Abdel Aty underscored the importance of fighting terrorism in Sahel by accomplishing development.

The other cooperation fields discussed are agriculture, given that Egypt already has a large farm in the country, and healthcare by operating medical caravans and drugs through the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development (EAPD).

The talks also covered preparations for a visit by Nigerien president to Cairo soon.