Egypt's President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi received on Wednesday his Tanzania counterpart Samia Hassan at the Ittihadiya Palace in Cairo, to discuss several bilateral topics as well as regional and international issues of mutual concern. Hassan's first visit to Egypt started with a bilateral meeting with President Al-Sisi, followed by extensive discussions between the delegations of the two countries. The meeting also touched upon the dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), as it was agreed to intensify coordination between the two countries during the coming period on this sensitive and vital issue. Al-Sisi stressed the importance of the water issue to Egypt as a national security matter. He also affirmed Egypt's insistence on its water rights by reaching a legally binding agreement to fill and operate the GERD, based on the rules of international law and the presidential statement of the UN Security Council in this regard. Al-Sisi also affirmed that Egypt is seeking to strengthen relations and consolidate strategic cooperation with Tanzania in various fields, especially at the economic, commercial and security levels, in addition to arranging the holding of the joint committee between the two countries. Moreover, the stressed Egypt's keenness to support the development needs of Tanzania, especially in the sectors of infrastructure, electricity, health and agriculture, by maximising the investments of Egyptian private companies that have gained extensive experience and expertise in these fields. Egypt's support to Tanzania includes also transferring expertise and building capacities through the courses and grants Egypt provides to contribute to building Tanzanian cadres. For her part, the Tanzanian President expressed her country's appreciation for its long and distinguished historical relations with Egypt, stressing Tanzania's keenness to develop these relations in various fields, especially trade and economic cooperation. Hassan also expressed her country's interest in maximising the technical support provided by Egypt to Tanzanian cadres in the areas of capacity building, as well as obtaining the support of Egyptian companies working in the field of infrastructure. The Tanzanian president also praised the pivotal role that Egypt plays regionally in maintaining peace and security, praising in this regard the Egyptian positions aimed at achieving stability in the Great Lakes region, East Africa, and the Nile Basin. The meeting concluded with a signing ceremony of a number of memoranda of understanding between the two countries in the fields of higher education, education, youth, and sports.
