Free Egyptians Party MP Tarek Radwan, 47, won Sohag's Dar Al-Salam district in 2015. Radwan subsequently served as head of parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee and, just as Egypt was about to chair the African Union (AU), he was chosen by the majority Support Egypt parliamentary coalition as head of the African Affairs Committee. Radwan won the post uncontested. What is your view of the Arab-African Youth Platform held in Aswan this week? The platform offers fresh evidence that Egypt's political leadership is placing African interests on the top of its agenda. After Egypt was elected chair of the AU in 2019 it moved on different fronts to step up cooperation between African and Arab countries. President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi has vowed that 2019 will be one of the most active years in the life of the African continent. The platform also demonstrates how empowering youth is central to Egypt's African strategy. In recent years Egypt has accumulated a wealth of experience organising youth forums. President Al-Sisi has pushed for a youth forum to be held annually in a bid to prepare young people for leadership roles, not just in Egypt but across Africa and the Arab world. The young make up more than 40 per cent of Africa's total population. The Arab-African Youth Platform in Aswan offered a perfect opportunity for young Africans and Arabs to compare experiences, raise their cultural awareness and prepare for leading positions in the future. The platform tried to bring African and Arab youth closer and as such is part and parcel of wider efforts to integrate Arab and African nations. Why was Aswan selected to host the Arab-African Youth Platform? Aswan has a distinctive nature as an Arab and an African city. It is also a place which is very rich in terms of history and civilisation and it has, of course, enormous tourist appeal. Holding the platform in Aswan seemed an obvious choice given the city's unique cultural and historical roles. Aswan, as is well-known, contains many monuments. One spin-off from the platform is that it helped shine a spotlight on Aswan. We want to see Aswan recover its place as a tourist destination. It has a rich cultural heritage, excellent hotels — some of them world famous — and warm weather all year round. It was always a major destination for European tourists seeking to enjoy their Christmas holidays somewhere warm but we also want it to attract Arab and African tourists. Did the platform focus on the challenges facing Africa? The platform aimed mainly to give young Arabs and Africans an opportunity to exchange views and express their hopes for the future. We wanted to find common ground. It is particularly important given young people will comprise more than half the population in Arab and African countries within a decade or two. Some of the platform's symposiums focused on fighting terrorism and extremism. Terrorist movements have made inroads in some African countries and the platform allowed young people to exchange their views on this dangerous phenomenon and discuss why young people in Africa and the Arab region might be tempted to join terrorist movements. What are Egypt's priorities as chair of the AU? Following the 30 June Revolution against the Muslim Brotherhood regime the AU suspended Egypt's membership. Five years later and not only is Egypt back in the fold, it was unanimously elected as the AU's chair. It was a major success for Egyptian diplomacy, and for President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi who has taken an active interest in Africa. More than a third of President Al-Sisi's foreign visits since 2014 have been to African countries. In this respect President Al-Sisi appears to be following late president Gamal Abdel-Nasser, a man many African countries see as a historic leader who played a leading role in supporting liberation movements. President Al-Sisi is committed to helping liberate Africa in economic terms. Egypt is using its 12 months as chair of the AU to step up economic cooperation and promote greater integration. Egypt's preparations included holding the two-day Africa 2018 Forum in Sharm El-Sheikh in December. The forum focused on promoting economic growth across the continent and creating a free trade zone. Priorities are clearly focused on the economy. Africa is very rich in terms of natural resources and has enormous economic and investment potential. Closer economic cooperation and integration between African countries will help the continent lift more people out of poverty and can play an important role in ending internal conflicts. The message Egypt wants to convey to African states in 2019 is that the closer we grow economically, the better the chances are to improve living standards and ensure the economic independence of our countries.
