Egypt takes part in meetings preparing for African Union Summit on Feb. 6-7

CAIRO – 4 February 2021: Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shokry took part Wednesday in the meetings of the Executive Council of the African Union held via video conferencing to prepare for the summit taking place on February 6-7.

The ministry's spokesperson Ahmed Hafez told press that the meeting tackled the COVID-19-ensued challenges the African Union (AU) encountered in 2020. FM Shokry reiterated Egypt's eagerness to back fellow African states through the pandemic, and the necessity of joint work for African countries to obtain the vaccine.

The minister also underlined the role of joint projects in achieving development on the continent, and strengthening ties among African peoples. Shokry pointed out that the projects included in the second phase of the Priority Action Plan (PAP) of the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) will play a major role in upgrading the continent's infrastructure.

The meeting also displayed the progress achieved on the financial and administrative reform level at the AU. In that context, Minister Shokry confirmed Egypt's commitment to reinforcing joint African work mechanisms that align with studied bases guaranteeing the validity and sustainability of the comprehensive reform of the union, and fulfilling the interests and ambitions of the continent's countries.