President Hichilema in Egypt to Drum Up Trade

President Hakainde Hichilema arrived in Cairo on Sunday for a reception with his Egyptian counterpart President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi at Al-Ittihadiya Palace. The visit is aimed at deepening existing bilaterial ties between these two countries situated at either end of the African continent.

Upon his arrival, President Hichilema reiterated his desire for “fruitful engagements that benefit our citizens”. This echoed earlier comments by Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli at the African Union in Addis Ababa this month, in which he praised the friendly political relations between Egypt and Zambia and signalled his intention to extend cooperation into the energy, agriculture, and healthcare spheres.

Of particular interest to President Hichilema for this visit is the urban development at Egypt’s New Administrative Capital (NAC). Under construction since 2015 and situated 45 kilometres east of Cairo, the development is the country’s planned capital, and includes many newly built government offices as well as residential communities.

President Hichilema will tour the new city as part of his visit, with the intention of learning from what he believes to be an exemplary case of Public-Private Partnership (PPP), achieved at a minimal cost to the taxpayer. This preserves funding for the crucial domains of education and healthcare.

The President commented that this is the sort of opportunity his government is “aggressively pursuing”, and highlighted the importance of learning, or “picking threads” from projects undertaken by fellow African countries. 

Discussions between the two leaders will touch on a wide range of issues such as trade and development cooperation, but President Hichilema’s positivity about this undertaking by the Egyptian government signals both his ambition and commitment to a productive and cooperative relationship between the public and private sectors.

The President will return to Lusaka on Tuesday 25 February.