H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation, met with Ms. Luminita Odobescu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania, to discuss ways to strengthen joint relations, within the 4th Joint Committee for Economic, Technical and Scientific Cooperation between Romania and Egypt, in Bucharest, Romania. The session was co-chaired by H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat from the Egyptian side, and the Minister of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Tourism on the Romanian side.
Al-Mashat’s meeting with Odobescu comes in preparation for the visit of the Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs to Egypt during October.
The meeting witnessed comprehensive discussions on various areas of cooperation, and the upcoming celebration of 120 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries next year. The two sides also discussed areas of partnership of mutual interest, the importance of increasing investments in light of Egypt’s interest in this matter, and providing many opportunities for foreign companies, especially in the Suez Canal Economic Zone.
During the meeting, H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat confirmed Egypt's interest in developing economic relations with Romania, while noting the government's extensive efforts to develop international economic partnerships. She also affirmed the depth of relations between Egypt and the European Union, the significant development witnessed by the partnership between Egypt and the European Union, and the announcement of the path to upgrading relations to the level of strategic partnership during the Egypt-EU summit last March.
Al-Mashat pointed out that Egypt launched its strategy to enhance South-South and triangular cooperation, reflecting the country’s commitment to play more active role in enhancing knowledge sharing between countries of the South, and benefiting from successful development experiences with development partners, expressing aspiration to expand cooperation with countries of the Global South to enhance inclusive growth.
The Minister also referred to the Suez Canal Economic Zone, which is the result of the Egyptian government's efforts over the past ten years to develop sustainable infrastructure and utilize its strategic location to connect the continents of Asia and Africa, and to work on attracting foreign direct investment, localizing industry, and encouraging export operations from the region as a global logistics hub for various countries of the world.
Moreover, she highlighted the need to increase private sector participation companies from both sides in the joint business forum, and their representation of a large number of priority sectors, in order to encourage joint investments, noting that despite regional and international developments and geopolitical tensions, Egypt is keen to take all measures that ensure the stability of the Egyptian economy, implementation of structural reforms, and approve tax and investment incentives, to attract private sector and foreign investments.
For her part, Romanian Foreign Minister Luminita Odobescu noted the importance of addressing the ongoing crises in the regions to which the two countries belong, from an integrated perspective, stressing Romania's support for deepening the strategic and comprehensive partnership between the European Union and Egypt.
It is worth noting that the joint committee aims to strengthen strategic bilateral economic relations, as cooperation will be maximized in areas of mutual interest such as agriculture, industry, communications, information technology and cybersecurity.