Since President Abdel Fattah El Sisi came to power, he has been keen to foster partnerships and co-operation with all African countries to boost Egypt’s role in implementing the joint African vision.
The Egyptian president paid the first visit to South Sudan in November 2020 to discuss co-operation between both countries and means to strengthen bilateral economic and development ties.
Believing in the importance of sports to bring people together and build peace, the Egyptian government through the Ministry of Youth and Sports is stepping up efforts to promote co-operation in sports. The Youth Ministry recently organised the first Cairo Conference for South Sudanese Youth in the context of the ‘Nile Valley Unity — Future Visions’ project in its third version and under the slogan ‘For South Sudan’. The project was launched in 2016 by the African Youth Bureau and the University Administration of the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
In an interview with The Egyptian Gazette, Hassan Ali Ghazaly, founder and head of the African Youth Bureau said the conference brings together South Sudanese youth from diverse backgrounds and Egyptian youth leaders to open channels for dialogue to reach common grounds for future vision.
“This conference is considered one of the mechanisms for implementing the ‘Continental Framework for African Youth, Peace and Security’ recently launched by the African Union Commission,” Ghazaly said.
“This event seeks to encourage and support youth participation in peace and security at regional and continental levels, guided by Article 17 of the African Youth Charter and UN Security Council Resolution 2250 of 2015,” Ghazaly added.
The conference also witnessed the signing of a co-operation protocol between youth ministries of both countries as part of the bilateral ties binding both countries to start implementing joint programmes and projects in the upcoming period.
“The protocol also came to activate the results of the historic visit by President Sisi last November,” he said.
The protocol stipulates the organisation an annual activity under the name of ‘Egypt-South Sudan Friendship Week’ to be held every year alternatively between the two countries and their cities. As for training programmes, the protocol mentions workshops to help youth start small projects besides webinars on how to use modern technologies to create job opportunities. The protocol also includes exchange visits and boosting cultural ties between both countries.
“Such activities reflect the keenness of the Egyptian political leadership on supporting African countries and strengthening diplomatic relations with them,” Ghazaly said.
Youth Minister Ashraf Sobhy said his ministry constantly seeks to consolidate co-operation with African countries, especially South Sudan, in the areas of youth and sports, stressing that the political leadership has opened new horizons for co-operation with all countries of the world.
For his part, South Sudanese Minister of Youth and Sports Albino Bol expressed his appreciation of the fruitful relations between the two countries in the field of youth, expressing his country’s desire to benefit from the Egyptian experience in this area.
Around 200 youth leaders of both genders aged 18-35 participated in the conference, in addition to the most influential groups in society represented by civil society activists and academics, in addition to journalists and media professionals as well as with Egyptian youth. The sessions dealt with fighting corruption in construction and development, involvement of youth and women in peace, and enhancing leadership capabilities of youth.
