The Africa 2018 Forum, which President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi inaugurated in Sharm El-Sheikh on Sunday, is the latest confirmation that Egypt means business with Africa. Since Al-Sisi took office nearly five years ago, strengthening ties with Africa has been a top priority and a cornerstone of Cairo's foreign policy. While it is easy to issue nicely worded statements on the importance of ties to Africa and desires to improve them, translating such words into action remained the key challenge. At the Africa 2018 Forum, attended by many African leaders whose countries are considered to be success stories in the impoverished continent, President Al-Sisi laid out a roadmap on how turn increased inter-African cooperation and trade into reality. This will not happen without injecting investment into African states through more joint projects, especially in fields of infrastructure, clean and renewable energy, information technology and communications. Needless to say, every dollar spent on infrastructure projects could attract its double in the form of an investment influx. Egypt has already taken significant strides on the road of social, economic and structural reform to improve its business climate and be a magnet for local and foreign investment. This allowed Egypt to expand its reach in several African countries, especially Sudan and Ethiopia. The three nations do not only share a long joint history and brotherly ties among their peoples, but their improving relations can lead to several mega infrastructure projects that will benefit all African countries overlooking the Nile Basin. What African leaders need to agree on are the steps necessary to achieve integration among African states and increase the volume of trade among them, especially after the African Union launched the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) during its summit in Nouakchott in March 2018. Several African states have also adopted economic reform programmes that allowed them to achieve a growth rate of 3.5 per cent in 2018, despite world economic challenges. This growth rate is expected to exceed four per cent in the coming few years. During its presidency of the African Union next year, Egypt will seek to achieve the goals agreed by African leaders in Sharm El-Sheikh, and to press ahead with the African continent's comprehensive development agenda. Meanwhile, the African continent needs reform programmes that run parallel with the requirements of our current age and the needs of its citizens. This means pressing ahead with Africa's development process and improving living conditions for all Africans through modernising roads, airports, ports, power networks, energy, water and drainage systems in African countries. African reform programmes should also meet the requirements of the information technology revolution, and run in line with current efforts to lower harmful greenhouse gas emissions. To carry out these reforms, the African continent needs huge investment in order to push forward and become an influential partner on the global level. Within this context, Egypt was keen to increase its investment in Africa by $1.2 billion, reaching a total of $10.2 billion in 2018. Considering that youth make up nearly 60 per cent of the continent's population, there is also an urgent need to meet their demands, mainly through providing funds for projects that create more job opportunities for young people. Special attention also needs to be directed towards empowering African women economically, in addition to eliminating all forms of violence and discrimination exercised against them, so as to enable them to assume their role as key partners in the development process. Meanwhile, international donors who are willing to invest in Africa are certainly welcome to contribute in ongoing efforts to improve living conditions in the continent. However, this will only be successful and useful if such investments are consistent with the agendas and priorities set by local governments, without preconditions or dictating terms that do not necessarily match local interests. Africa certainly has lots of potential in terms of raising living standards and give its peoples hope for the future. Gatherings such as the Africa 2018 Forum will help boost inter-African cooperation, improve the continent's competitive capabilities and translate into action Africa's aspirations for a better future for all its countries.
