Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- As part of the visit of the Uzbekistan Working Group to the Arab Republic of Egypt, a number of meetings were held in Cairo on 19 February 2022 with the heads of key ministries and departments of Egypt. During the meetings, prospects for increasing bilateral cooperation in priority sectors were discussed.

At a meeting with Minister of Industry and Trade Ahmed Saleh, concrete steps were discussed to deepen cooperation in trade, economic and investment areas. The parties agreed on a number of practical measures to establish a joint Industrial Cooperation and Distribution Center in Port Said, develop and sign a Preferential Trade Agreement, establish a joint Business Council and hold its first meeting in the second half of 2023 in Tashkent.

An agreement was reached with Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat to hold the 7th meeting of the Uzbek-Egyptian Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation in September this year in the capital of Uzbekistan, as well as to develop and approve a "Roadmap" to deepen cooperation in the field of industrial cooperation in a short time.

In an interview with Chairman of Air Cairo Hussein Sherif, the possibilities of expanding the geography and increasing the number of direct flights between Uzbekistan and Egypt were discussed. The Egyptian side expressed readiness to launch regular flights in the direction of Cairo–Tashkent–Cairo in the near future and announced the company's intentions to increase the number of flights to 14 per week, including to Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh.

Plans to expand investment cooperation and implement joint projects were discussed with Hossam Heiba, CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones of Egypt. The sides noted the enormous potential for further comprehensive development of the bilateral partnership and agreed to take comprehensive measures to assist companies of both countries to enter national markets.

On the same day, the Uzbek-Egyptian business forum was held (link to the material), which was attended by about 200 representatives of leading companies from both countries, including such Egyptian companies as Orascom Construction, Kandil Steel Group, Metco, ZAS, Giza Cable Industries, Shoura Chemicals, Polyee Plast, Solarsol EG and others. Within the framework of the event, a number of investment agreements and trade contracts were signed, also providing for the establishment of Uzbek textile enterprises in Port Said for subsequent export to Africa and the Middle East.