President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban witnessed on Wednesday the signing of five joint memorandums of understanding and letters of intent as part of the Egyptian- Hungarian Business Forum, held in Cairo.

At the end of forum, Sisi delivered a keynote speech, praising historic relations binding Egypt and Hungry in various fields.

Earlier in the day, President Sisi received Orban to discuss prompting bilateral cooperation. 
President Sisi hoped that the Egyptian- Hungarian Business Forum would represent a real opportunity to explore wider horizons to promote economic cooperation and lay the foundations for a serious partnership and constructive cooperation between both countries.

Cooperation of the the Egyptian and Hungarian business communities is a prerequisite to enhance bilateral economic relations binding the two countries, Sisi said.

President Sisi praised steps taken by the Hungarian government on the path of economic reform, which led Hungary to achieve one the highest growth rates in Europe and create new jobs along with enhancing the financial resources of the state.

The Egyptian state has completed its democratic institutions by the election of House of Representatives, Sisi said.

Egypt has already started to take several legislative and administrative measures to provide an attractive investment climate and overcome obstacles before investors, Sisi said.

The country has launched a number of mega national projects that would put Egypt on the world investment map as an emerging economy, mainly the New Suez Canal development project and reclamation of 1.5 million feddans, which is meant to increase the agricultural area by 20% and will provide 25,000 new jobs, the Egyptian president noted. 
President Sisi said Egypt is determined to implement Egypt's Sustainable Development Strategy 2030, asserting commitment to the comprehensive development plan adopted by Egypt, including the establishment of the new administrative capital, a number of new cities and a national network for roads.

The plan also includes construction and development of several airports and seaports along with developing oil and national gas fields, Sisi said.

The Egyptian economy has achieved a growth rate hitting 4.2% during one year, Sisi said.

Egypt targets achieving a growth rate up to 6% by the end of financial year 2017-2018, President Sisi said.

The Egyptian government exerted utmost efforts recently to promote economic performance and develop infrastructure and provide suitable climate to investment, the president said. 

We are looking forward to enhancing cooperation and joint action at the economic level in various sectors, President Sisi concluded.
The Hungarian Premier praised depth of bilateral relations binding Egypt and Hungary.

Orban reviewed the economic reform efforts in Hungary.

Hungary has managed to increase the growth rate and reduce the public debt and budget deficit, he said.

Egypt has a national desire to develop economy, he noted, expressing readiness to share knowledge with Egypt in this respect.

The Hungarian business council representatives are looking forward to executing successful economic projects in Egypt in cooperation with their Egyptian counterparts. 

He also invited representatives of Egyptian businesses to invest in Hungary.

The Hungarian government will provide them with all forms of facilities to encourage their investments, he said. 

Several programs will be launched during the coming period to help increase the volume of trade exchange between both countries, he concluded.

Source: MENA