WRAP-UP: Sisi's speech at 'Tale of a Homeland' conference

CAIRO – 17 January 2018: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi delivered a speech on Wednesday at the inauguration of the two-day conference titled "Tale of a Homeland" to review the achievements made during his four-year tenure.

The president began his speech by asking the audience to take a minute of silence, not in mourn, but in appreciation to Egypt and its people.

Sisi then asked Egyptians to stay proud and positive because they were lending a hand in building the country for the sake of future generations, and that is not deemed suffering.

The Egyptian leader said he feels so proud when he meets with leaders of other countries and tells them that it is not about him or his government, but about the people who insist on making their own future and contributing to their country’s progress and prosperity.

“All the achievements and reforms that got carried out were because of all Egyptians,” President Sisi said.

The president said he deemed his period as a president as a “rescue mission.” “It is our duty to learn from the past and present what he has accomplished during the past four years.”

He also said that what Egypt accomplished during the past years is the results of a dream that Egyptians insisted on bringing to reality.

He commended on the stand Egyptians adopted in the face of “everyone who seeks to steal their dreams and threaten their stability and security with their unity and dignity.”

“The great people of Egypt stood in the face of terrorism and sacrificed a lot in their battle to bring back security and stability against enemies of life and humanity,” Sisi stressed. “In the front rows of this battle were men of the Egyptian Army and the Egyptian Police; history will never forget them and will commemorate them with letters of light in Egypt’s record of struggles.”

He added that Egyptians faced another battle, which is the battle of rebuilding the country, renewing hope and establishing solid basis, on which future generations will rely on. He also pointed out that with the help of Egyptians; his government was able to set the cornerstone of a democratic state.

The president said the history of nations is a continuous series that leads to prosperity after overcoming battles and gaining victories; “We must learn from the past, document the present and think ahead for a great future.”

“As long Egyptians are armed with patience and unity, no one will ever surpass them,” Sisi stressed.

As he began reciting some of the achievements, the President said an Electricity Transmission Network is currently being established with a total cost of LE60 billion to LE70 billion. Moreover, about 62 agreements were signed to contribute to the development of the oil sector, not to mention that reserves of natural gas discoveries doubled by about eight times from 2010 to 2014 to reach 36.8 trillion sqm.

He also added that projects to develop natural gas fields were carried out with total investments of $12.6 billion to increase its outcome to reach 5 million sqm per day, amounting around 130% increase during 2010-2014.

The president clarified that Egypt’s urban areas got increased to face the increasing population, which now reached around 100 million citizens, and is expected to reach 150 million citizens in 2030.

Sisi also pointed out that he spared no effort to create job opportunities for the youth in order to decrease unemployment rates.

He stressed that it was a priority to present Egypt to the whole world as the face of reconstruction and development, so that Egypt could get back to its international stature.

He also mentioned some other projects such as the new infrastructure mega project, the Suez Canal tunnels, the drinking water and sanitation units and other projects that attracted foreign investment.

He also said his fourth goal was to boost the military abilities of the Armed Forces in order to preserve national security.

President Sisi revealed that the Egyptian state achieved about 11 thousand projects by a rate of three projects per day, which is considered a record for any country that seeks advancement and progress.

He also affirmed that he did not hesitate to take the reformation decisions despite all estimations that advised otherwise, or otherwise he would’ve called it “treason”.

"Together we will walk through the path of the success during the "Tale of a Homeland" conference, from January 17 to 19," official Twitter account of president Sisi announced Sunday.

The president is also set to answer citizens' questions about his four years in office during "Ask the President" conference session slated for Thursday, as part of the online initiative which holds the same name and was launched earlier in January.