Egypt and Vietnam signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance cooperation in economic development, witnessed by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and his Vietnamese counterpart, Luong Cuong, during a summit in Cairo. The MoU was signed by Egypt's Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, Rania Al-Mashat, and Vietnam's Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, Phan Thi Thang. The agreement aims to deepen economic relations in areas including the digital economy, climate change, sustainable development, renewable energy, and the localisation of industry, with active participation from the private sector, Al-Mashat said in a statement. The MoU includes working on policy dialogue, knowledge exchange, capacity building, and sharing successful practices within the framework of South-South economic cooperation. Al-Mashat emphasized the importance of the Joint Committee between Egypt and Vietnam as a key mechanism for promoting economic development. The committee has held five sessions to date, serving as a platform for dialogue between the governments and business communities of both sides. "The signed MoU opens new avenues, in light of the comprehensive partnership between the two countries, to enhance and deepen bilateral economic and trade relations," she said. During the visit, Al-Mashat also held a meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam to discuss mechanisms for implementing the outcomes of the presidential summit and preparations for the 6th session of the Joint Committee. Egyptian-Vietnamese relations date back to the 1960s, and a joint ministerial committee was formed in 1997. In 2017, President Sisi made the first-ever visit by an Egyptian president to Vietnam, during which several joint cooperation documents were signed.
