2 July 2008…

Within the framework of the Egyptian policy, which aims at facing the food crisis and reducing its acuteness in Africa, and upon the directives of Foreign Minister Aboul Gheit, Secretary-General of the Egyptian Fund for Technical Cooperation with Africa (EFTCA), Ambassador Neveen Ashmawy, and Deputy Assistant Foreign Minister for East Asian Countries Affairs, Ambassador Magdy Amer, received a high-level delegation from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The delegation was headed by JICA Senior vice President, Mr. Kenzo Oshima, and JICA Resident Representative in Cairo, Mr. Katsuhiko Ozawa. This meeting follows Japan announcement of launching an initiative to double rice production in Africa and to increase rice production in Africa from 14 million to 28 million tons, in order to secure the needs of the African citizen, particularly in rural areas.

Ambassador Ashmawy highlighted Egypt's readiness to participate in the Japanese initiative, in light of its successful experience in rice production which turned Egypt from a rice-importer into an exporter. The Egyptian participation will include dispatching experts to African countries in the fields of agriculture, irrigation and drainage, as these fields significantly contribute to the development of rice production in Africa.

The Secretary-General added that the meeting with the Japanese delegation also tackled some pending bilateral issues between Egypt and Japan, such as the establishment the Egyptian-Japanese University for Science and Technology (E-JUST), and the expansion of Abu El-Reesh Children's Hospital, which the Japanese delegation promised to implement as soon as possible.