Egypt and Angola have discussed expanding co-operation in defence and civilian industries, with a focus on joint manufacturing, technology transfer and investment, the Ministry of Military Production said.
Egypt’s Minister of State for Military Production. Major General Salah Suleiman Gomblat, on Thursday received Angola’s Minister of State and Head of the Military Office of the President of the Republic, João Ernesto dos Santos, Minister of Trade and Industry Rui Miguéns de Oliveira, Secretary of State for Military Industry General Afonso Carlos Neto, and an accompanying delegation.
The meeting, that took place at the headquarters of the ministry in the New Capital, focused on a number of areas of mutual interest, with several ministry and National Organisation for Military Production officials also attending.
Bilateral ties have seen notable development in light of the two countries’ leaderships’ keenness to boost co-operation, which creates promising opportunities for industrial and investment partnerships that could generate genuine added value and enhance the industrial capabilities of both sides, Gomblat said.
He also stressed the ministry’s commitment to implementing President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s directives to enhance co-operation with African countries, as well as offering all forms of support to establish a strategic partnership with Angola in defence and civilian manufacturing.
Proposed co-operation with Angola will not be limited to a specific field, but will explore opportunities in various defence and civilian industries according to the needs of both sides, Gomblat noted.
Discussions between the two sides also covered technology transfer and localisation, joint manufacturing, mutual use of available capabilities and expertise, and training programmes for Angolan engineers at institutions affiliated with the ministry.
For his part, Angola’s dos Santos highly appreciated the warm reception and stressed President João Manuel Lourenço’s directives to boost co-operation with Egypt.
Dos Santos lauded the manufacturing, technological, technical and human capabilities of Egypt’s military production companies, some of which the Angolan delegation visited to gain a first-hand understanding of their capabilities, manufacturing activities and potential areas of co-operation.
The two sides agreed to build on the outcome of their discussions and continue co-ordination and communication to pave the way for turning proposed areas of co-operation into practical steps and industrial and investment partnerships.
