Expert meetings of the Egyptian-Hungarian Committee convened over two days to discuss the details of the committee protocol and areas of joint interest.
H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, chaired a preparatory meeting with representatives from various ministries and national entities, as part of the preparations for the 5th session of the Egyptian-Hungarian Joint Committee for Economic, Scientific, and Technical Cooperation, which is scheduled to be held tomorrow, Thursday.
The meeting reviewed the follow up on the outcomes and recommendations implemented during the 4th session of the Egyptian-Hungarian Joint Committee, in addition to addressing the challenges and obstacles that may face the implementation of the protocol of the previous session of the Joint Committee, working to identify appropriate mechanisms to activate these recommendations, and strengthening the mechanisms of follow-up and continuous evaluation of what is achieved within the framework of joint cooperation, with the aim of ensuring the best possible results in all fields during the current session.
The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministries of Health, Education and Technical Education, Tourism and Antiquities, Petroleum, Housing, Youth and Sports, Transport, Agriculture, Culture, ICT, Irrigation, Supply, Environment, National Media Authority, Egyptian Space Agency, Civil Aviation Authority, and Suez Canal Economic Zone.
H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat emphasized the significant progress in economic relations between Egypt and Hungary, which includes key sectors such as construction, information technology, food, water, healthcare, finance and banking, noting that the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation is working hard to ensure the success of the joint committee's work and follow up on its results and continuous communication with all parties to remove any obstacles that prevent the implementation of any of the Supreme Committee's decisions.
Al-Mashat explained that the partnership between Egypt and Hungary extends to a history and decades of joint cooperation, as Egypt was the first Arab country to establish diplomatic relations with Hungary in 1928, which reflects the continuous ties between our two countries, and is evident in the significant development of our joint relations, which have seen a convergence of visions between the leaderships of both countries and mutual visits, the latest of which was H.E. President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi receiving the Hungarian President during her first visit to Egypt last November.
In a related context, the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation chaired the expert-level preparatory meetings for the 5th session of the Egyptian-Hungarian Joint Committee for Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation on April 8 and 9.
The expert meetings discussed areas of mutual interest, within the framework of Egypt's keenness to strengthen bilateral relations with Hungary in all fields, especially economic cooperation relations, as this session aims to promote and develop bilateral economic relations in all their fields, removing all obstacles to their development, and increase intraregional investments.
The Egyptian and Hungarian sides discussed the terms of the protocol in several areas of mutual interest, as well as finalizing the memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the field of environmental protection, and discussed the agenda of the ministerial committee and arrangements for the Egyptian-Hungarian business council that will be held on the sidelines of the joint committee.
Representatives of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Agriculture, Electricity and Renewable Energy, Suez Canal Economic Zone, Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Investment and Foreign Trade, Culture, Education and Technical Education, Supply, Transportation and Industry, Water Resources and Irrigation, Military Production, Youth and Sports, Health and Population, Housing, Utilities and Urban Communities, Communications and Information Technology, Tourism and Antiquities, Environment, the Arab Organization for Industrialization, the National Media Authority and the Egyptian Space Agency participated on the Egyptian side, while on the Hungarian side, the Ministries of Energy, Environment and Water, Transport, Economy, Agriculture and Rural Development, Research and Digitization, and Family and Youth also participated.
The ministerial committee will be chaired by Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation, and Mr. Peter Szijjarto, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade on the Hungarian side.
The agenda for the 5th session of the committee includes holding an Egyptian-Hungarian Business Forum in the presence of a number of Egyptian and Hungarian businessmen, which will discuss all possible ways to increase economic cooperation between the two countries through the key role of the private sector, discuss areas of common interest, and present investment opportunities in the two countries.
It is worth noting that the economic cooperation relations between the two countries are governed by the Economic Cooperation Agreement signed in September 2007, which was signed to replace the Economic Cooperation Agreement concluded in March 1996 after Hungary joined the European Union in May 2004, and 4 sessions of the Egyptian-Hungarian Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation were held, the last of which was in February 2023.