On 6^th March 2018, the Council hosted, Dr. Maria Sultan- Chairperson of The South Asian Strategic Stability Institute (SASSI), and Mr. Nadeem Ashraf- counselor at the Embassy of Pakistan, Cairo.

In order to take the Council’s opinion on the agenda of the international business forum which be held by the Pakistani side in Cairo on early May or end of June 2018, in conjunction with the 70^th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Egypt and Pakistan.

Dr. Maria Sultan explained as a member of the Forum’s Organizing Committee, they plan to involve some organizations from public and private sectors in two countries such as the Investment Authority and the Industry Authority and the leading companies in the fields of trade, small and medium industries, etc.

She added that as the two countries belonging to the initiative of china’s Belt and road initiative, specifically the Silk Road Economic Belt, which runs through the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Aden and the Suez Canal (the percentage of each one of them in international trade rates is 17.7% and 6.5% and 11.5% in sequence) The symposium will maximize the benefit of this initiative, so the Suez port and Pakistan’s Gwadar will become among the major ports in the world (8 East China + Singapore + Rotterdam + the U.S ports + New Zealand).

This requires studying the security’s dimensions and related challenges that facing the traffic and trade process through these areas and encouraging joint investment She added that they will start holding this forum with Egypt this year and then with Saudi Arabia, Iran and Turkey, and finally with China in 2019.

Dr. Maria believe that the forum will be conducted through eight working groups headed jointly by Egypt and Pakistan and will discuss some issues related to (Transport / Free Economic Zones / Large Enterprises / Small and Medium Enterprises / Natural Resources / Banking and Finance / Digital Economy / Military Industrialization/ Working group to discuss the ways to Counter-Terrorism,..etc.etc.) Ambassador Ezzat Saad pointed out that the organizing committee can take advantage of the successful conference organized in April 2017 on “Industrial and Commercial Investment for the countries of China’s Belt and road initiative ” between “the Egyptian Businessmen Association and China Federation of Industrial Economics (CFIE)” sponsored by the Minister of Commerce and Industry, with a number of banks and financial institutions such as China Development Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), and several Egyptian banks.

Ambassador Saad added that he participated in this conference and noted the participation of Pakistan Board of Investment.

Ms. Sultan commented that she had already arranged meetings with the officials of the Egyptian Businessmen Association and that she asked the Egyptian Council (ECFA) to provide them with the Egyptian authorities or personalities who could advise in the process of this conference.

The Council has already provided some information requested by the Pakistani delegation, and is ready to participate actively in the Forum which will be held later this year.