Cooperation with Nile Basin countries and African countries in general is one of the most important priorities for the Egyptian Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, said Minister Mohamed Salem. Cooperation with these countries is part of the ministry's vision of the future, which includes building strong relationships and providing economic aid to Nile Basin countries in Africa, Salem said. “Egypt has agreed to provide technical support for Nile Basin countries by transferring expertise through trainings, technical skill-building workshops, youth empowerment in information technology, capacity-building, technical cooperation and cultural communication enrichment,” Salem continued. “Egypt is launching a large human development project for training,” Salem said. “The first phase will involve delegations from Nile Basin countries who will attend training courses at the National Institute for Communications and Information Technology.” The course will take seven to ten days and 20 trainees will attend from each country, he added. The first phase will include 200 total trainees, and the goal of the project is to train 3,000 professionals from Basin countries. The program will include visits to technological companies in Egypt in the Smart Village as well as inspections of facilities, private centers and call centers, the minister said. Salem will also visit a number of Basin countries – including Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia – to implement programs of cooperation, partnership, cultural exchange and expertise. An Egyptian mission will also soon be sent to Ethiopia and South Sudan. The mission will include experts from the Institute of Information Technology who will discuss the provision of training and human development. It will also include leaders from Egypt Telecom who will help with infrastructure creation, particularly in South Sudan. The Ministry will provide a range of specialized programs in both the communications and information technology fields for Eritrea, Rwanda and Burundi. Egypt will also help Uganda set up its own Smart Village project.
