BRICS Plus Summit

This afternoon, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi participated via video conference in the high-level dialogue session on global development, within the framework of the BRICS Plus, under the chairmanship of Chinese President Xi Jinping, along with the participation of a number of heads of state and government.

The Spokesman for the Presidency stated that BRICS is one of the most important economic groupings worldwide. It includes the membership of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Egypt previously participated as a guest in the BRICS Summit that was held in China in September 2017. The Chinese president's invitation for Egypt's participation in the high-level dialogue session in the summit this year confirms Egypt's status as well as the leading political, economic and trade potential it has at the regional level. This qualifies it to enhance its relations with this important development forum. The invitation also demonstrates the strong bonds based on the comprehensive strategic partnership between Egypt and China across various fields, as well as the close friendship between President El-Sisi and his Chinese counterpart.
Following is the President's remarks:

Your Excellency President Xi Jinping

Chairman of the current  BRICS session 

Your Excellencies

Heads of member states and friendly countries, 

Allow me to start by extending my greetings and appreciation to all of you and to express to you, Your Excellency President Xi Jinping and your friendly country, my sincere gratitude for your kind invitation for Egypt to participate in the high-level dialogue session on global development, within the framework of the "BRICS Plus".

It is an honor for me to participate in the BRICS summit for the second time after my participation in the ninth summit of the BRICS, in the brotherly country of China in 2017. It is a pleasure to participate in the two summits upon the invitation of my brother, President Xi Jinping. 

I would also like to express my appreciation for the BRICS grouping; a forum whose position is growing day by day at the international scene, considering the scope of the economies of its countries that represents more than 20% of the world’s GDP. This is in addition to their weight at the international fora, both political and economic, and their prominent role in enhancing cooperation between the South countries.

I would also like to seize this opportunity to express Egypt's sincere appreciation for the Global Development Initiative, put forward by China, with the aim of refocusing on development issues through revitalizing international development cooperation.

I would also like to express Egypt's appreciation and pleasure to join the membership of the New Development Bank in December 2021. The Bank can contribute, through the financial instruments that it provides, to increasing interaction among the BRICS countries and other developing non-member states. 

Egypt’s accession to the Bank’s membership at this time is an evidence of the strength and resilience of the Egyptian economy, and its ability to withstand shocks and overcome challenges. We look forward to the Bank’s support to Egypt’s efforts in achieving sustainable development, attracting foreign investment and enhancing the role of the private sector.

Egypt has also worked on localizing the industry, maximizing exports and increasing allocations for social protection and support, also pension fund allocations, while continuing to implement initiatives that seek to achieve the comprehensive and sustainable development goals, such as the  “Decent Life Initiative” and “100 Million Healthy Lives Initiative”. At the same time, Egypt is relentlessly seeking to turn into a renewable energy hub by diversifying its production sources and expanding the production of green hydrogen, solar energy and wind energy.

Your Excellencies,

Egypt appreciates the keenness of the BRICS grouping to adopt a common vision towards political and economic issues of interest to developing countries, particularly regarding the exploration of prospects for development cooperation and the support of development financing.

In this regard, I would like to emphasize that efforts directed towards addressing the repercussions of the current economic crisis must not be at the expense of supporting the achievement of sustainable development  in developing and least developed countries, which still suffer from shortage in financing for development. This obstructs their efforts aimed at achieving tangible progress towards the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. In addition, the international community as a whole has to engage more effectively and positively in efforts to empower developing countries to achieve development and obtain the necessary financing.

I would also like to stress that the acheivemnt of development goals has to come in parallel with the consolidation of all international efforts to address various challenges, on top of which are the issues of terrorism and climate change.

Terrorism remains among the biggest challenges that humanity faces in our time. This phenomenon violates the basic rights of citizens, mainly the right to life. It also hinders the efforts of governments towards achieving economic and social goals of their peoples.

Therefore, Egypt stresses the need to adopt a comprehensive approach that includes various dimensions to dry up the sources of terrorism and prevent the provision of funding, safe havens, and media platforms for terrorist organizations. This is in addition to addressing the economic and social conditions and factors that push some towards extremism and join terrorist groups. This approach requires intensifying international cooperation for it to succeed in order to ensure the sustainability of international peace and security.

With regard to climate change, its negative effects on our planet have become a reality that we sense in all our countries, impeding our development plans and threatening water and food security worldwide. This increases the frequency and complexity of conflicts, leading to a rise in illegal immigration and internal displacement.

As the next president of COP 27, Egypt will exert every possible effort to achieve compatibility among all parties concerned with international climate action. This particularly includes efforts to reduce emissions as well as support and enhance the efforts of developing and least developed countries to adapt to the negative effects of climate change, limit its negative repercussions, and address losses and damages in order to contribute to the implementation of previous commitments and pledges and turn them into a tangible reality.

I look forward to receiving you all at the leaders’ summit in November 2022 to reaffirm the solidarity of the international community and its determination to advance all aspects of global climate action, in addition to the importance we accord to confronting climate change at all levels.

Your Excellencies,

In conclusion, I would like to assure you that we look forward to strengthening cooperation between Egypt and the BRICS grouping and benefiting from its experiences in various fields related to achieving economic growth and sustainable development in order to fulfill the hopes and aspirations of our peoples, towards a better and more prosperous future.

Thank you.