Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation, Rania Al Mashat, highlighted the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) as a potential strategic hub for Ukrainian grain storage and re-export to Africa during a high-level meeting in Cairo with Ukrainian Minister of Agricultural Policy and Food Vitaliy Koval and other senior officials.

The meeting focused on strengthening bilateral ties between Egypt and Ukraine in key sectors including trade, agriculture, and logistics.

Minister Al Mashat highlighted the ongoing expansion of silo infrastructure in Egypt, particularly at the West Port Said Port silo, inaugurated in 2021, to increase the country’s grain storage capacity.

This infrastructure is key to Egypt's ambitions to serve as a regional hub for Ukrainian grain, which would be stored and re-exported to neighboring African markets.

Koval expressed interest in establishing a logistics zone in Egypt to facilitate Ukrainian exports to Africa and mentioned Ukraine's increasing agricultural exports to Egypt.

He pointed out that Ukrainian agricultural exports to Egypt grew by 32% last year, reaching $1.4 billion, and total agricultural exports to Africa amounted to $2.6 billion.

The meeting also touched on potential collaboration in agriculture, with both countries looking at areas such as seed production, farming, and food manufacturing.

Al Mashat emphasized Egypt's commitment to boosting cooperation with Ukraine, enhancing trade relations, exploring investment opportunities available in Egypt for Ukrainian companies, and finding ways to increase Egyptian investments in Ukraine.

The PlanningMin noted the role of the Egyptian-Ukrainian Joint Committee for Economic, Scientific, and Technical Cooperation, which facilitates business collaboration, fosters private-sector involvement, and supports development initiatives.

A key result of the meeting was the signing of a cooperation agreement between Egypt and Ukraine focused on standardization, specifications, and quality, along with a Memorandum of Understanding in the space sector.

Tourism was discussed, with Ukraine being one of Egypt’s key tourism partners, sending up to 1.5 million tourists annually.

Koval reiterated Ukraine's interest in expanding cooperation with Egypt, leveraging Egypt's strategic location to enhance Ukrainian exports to Africa and further solidify their partnership.