A popular delegation has left Cairo for Khartoum today in a tour that will also include Eritrea. The delegation consists of members of various parties, including El-Wafd, El-Tagammu and the Nasserist parties, as well as journalists, public figures and members of various NGOs. The group will meet with Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir and Vice-President ElSayed Othman Taha and other officials. The delegation will then head to South Sudan to meet with President Salva Kiir Mayardit. On Tuesday, the group will leave to Eritrea to meet with President Isaias Afewerki and some of the country's senior officials. The head of the Wafd Party, El-Sayed El-Badawi, who will be in the delegation, said that the purpose of the visit is to discuss relations between Egypt and these two countries. He added that they will discuss with Sudanese officials the possibility of increasing economic ties between the two countries. Ali Selmy, also a member of the Wafd Party, added that the delegation will also discuss the Nile Basin crisis with Sudanese officials.
