Egypt's cabinet has approved a draft bill for the establishing of an Egyptian space agency that would "serve the state's strategy in scientific research and restore Egypt's historical status," higher education minister Ashraf El-Sheihi said. The announcement was made on Saturday by higher education deputy minister Essam Khamis at a conference for the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport in Alexandria. On Thursday, the cabinet said in an official statement that the agency would work on programmes related to the development of space technology, as well as establishing the infrastructure for the manufacturing of satellite systems. The cabinet also said that the agency would represent Egypt on a regional and international level, adding that it would contribute in preparing training programmes in schools and universities in the field of space technology. Egypt is among 77 current members of the United Nations General Assembly's (UNGA) Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, which was established in 1959. The UNGA's committee programme aims to "enhance the understanding and subsequent use of space technology for peaceful purposes in general, and for national development in particular, in response to expressed needs in different geographic regions of the world."
