The Minister of International Cooperation H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat participated in the “Russia-Africa” session that took place as part of the 24th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, from June 2 to June 5, representing the Arab Republic of Egypt. This forum is considered a global leading event that tackles economic challenges faced by the world and emerging countries. The SPIEF takes place this year under the theme of “A Collective Reckoning of the New Global Economic Reality.” During the “Russia-Africa” session, the discussion revolved around the impact of rapid global changes during the pandemic; Russia’s business strategy in Africa in the coming period particularly in the health, food security, infrastructure and education sectors, and potential collaborations and projects. Alongside Al-Mashat, the panel was attended by Firmin Ngrébada, the Prime Minister of the Central African Republic; Édouard Ngirente, the Prime Minister of Rwanda; Sarah Agbor, the Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology at the African Union Commission; Mikhail Bogdanov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation; Kirill Lipa, the General Director of Transmashholding; Alexander Saltanov, the Chairman of The Association of Economic Cooperation with African States at the Russian Academy of Sciences; and Dmitry Konyaev, Chairman of the Board of Directors of URALCHEM. Virtually, representatives from the African Export-Import Bank, the United Nations Technology Bank, and The Russian Export Center also attended the panel that was moderated by Irina Abramova, the Director of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Opening New Horizons: Consolidating Egyptian-Russian-African Relations During her speech, Al-Mashat stressed the importance of the Egyptian-Russian relations that have grown over the past years. The strategic partnership is reflected in many major projects being implemented, such as the Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant project that costs $25 billion, and the Russian Industrial Zone in the Suez Canal Economic Zone that is expected to bring in investment amounting to $7 billion. Al-Mashat mentioned that the Russian-African Summit and Economic Forum was co-chaired by the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2019; highlighting Egypt’s regional role as the gateway for Russian businesses in the African continent in light of strong Egyptian-African relations. The Minister added that private sector companies implement many development interventions across the continent such as dams, and electricity and infrastructure projects. She commented that global cooperation had also increased in health in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. H.E. Al-Mashat tackled the available opportunities that would enhance the Egyptian-Russian-African cooperation, within the framework of Egypt’s distinguished position and its strategic relations in the African continent. The Minister explained that Egypt serves as a link through which the tripartite Russian-African cooperation would be strengthened; as the country is a member of the Presidential initiative to develop the continent’s infrastructure, which opens the door for Egyptian-Russian-African partnerships to further implement infrastructure projects. Al-Mashat pointed out the possibility of establishing an investment fund that encompasses Egypt, Russia and Africa with the aim of activating economic, trade, and development cooperation. The investment shall focus on the development of the infrastructure sector across Africa through the enhancement of the networks of roads, railways, ports, electricity, and housing; as well as the advancement of the industry and agriculture sectors. H.E. further elaborated that the Russian Industrial Zone in Egypt shall be a gateway to the African continent due to its strategic location and its strong infrastructure. The Minister stated that the Free Trade Agreement between Egypt and countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) (Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia) could play a key role in strengthening the Russian-African Trade Exchange between the African and the European Union; and in the establishment of vocational training and entrepreneurship centers in partnership between Egypt and Russia. The training centers shall be based in Egypt, where there would be an exchange of experiences and visions in order to train African cadres; with an emphasis on the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) sector. Investment Relations & Egyptian-African Joint Cooperation Al-Mashat also talked about the economic and investment relations between Egypt and the African continent. The Minister explained that Egypt is working in parallel to strengthen mutual relations with various african countries by implementing projects under the African Union (AU). In September 2019, Egypt launched an initiative to test a million African citizens for the Hepatitis C virus and provided treatment for patients. Egypt also worked in various infrastructure projects; and within the aviation sector, EgyptAir signed a memorandum of understanding to establish the Ghana Airways Limited with joint investments. In transportation, Egypt recently signed a cooperation agreement with Sudan in the railway sector to build a line between Aswan and Wadi Halfa, Sudan. Moreover, in water and irrigation, Egypt is working to build the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Station, a hydroelectric dam in Tanzania. In construction, the Arab Contractors company is also implementing projects across 23 African countries that cost about $1.5 billion, and this includes an electrical linkage project between Africa and Europe. Development Opportunities in Africa H.E. Al-Mashat affirmed that the joint African relations are a huge opportunity to accelerate growth, as the area of the Free-Trade African Agreement will contribute in reducing commodity prices, increasing Africa’s competitiveness on the global level which would also attract more investments. Africa’s population rate is very high; indicators estimate