Egypt is the most populous country in the Arab world, and its president, Abdel Fattah El Sisi, has discussed the great task he had in the last decade to restore peace to the country, as well as the path ahead for Egypt.
El Sisi said on Monday, while speaking at the World Government Summit in Dubai, that the first issue was to confront the loss of hope and despair that Egyptians have felt throughout these years of instability.
The years 2011 to 2013 were marked by widespread demonstrations in Egypt, which ultimately led to the fall of President Hosni Mubarak and put in motion a series of events that resulted in Mr. El Sisi assuming power after an intervention by the military.
According to Mr. El Sisi, “the first obstacle after 2011 was the loss of hope and the despair that Egyptians faced.” [Citation needed]
“There was complete anarchy in Egypt. The whole administration was dealing with problems inside its own ranks. Egypt has had difficulties as a result of becoming the target of terrorist attacks. People have said that we choose peace and safety above even having access to food. The situation had gotten to this point. There is no longer any need to be concerned about terrorism. Egypt lost billions of dollars due to the unrest that took place in 2011.
During his speech, which took place in the presence of President Sheikh Mohamed and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, Mr. El Sisi expressed gratitude to the leaders of the United Arab Emirates for the assistance that they have provided to Egypt over the course of the past few years.
During the early stages of his administration, when Egypt was experiencing a shortage of gasoline and people were lining up at gas stations around the nation, he singled out Sheikh Mohamed for his support. At the time, he was president of Egypt.
Mr. El Sisi is quoted as saying, “I made no request, yet he recognised what we needed.” “I saw ships transporting gas, oil, and gasoline being redirected from the Red Sea and the Mediterranean,” she said.
He said that dealing with the energy was difficult. “I found this to be challenging.”
The discussion, which was led by Faisal Bin Huraiz of Sky News Arabia and covered a variety of topics, including Egypt’s efforts to reform the economy, climate change, population growth, and how Mr. El Sisi has attempted to rebuild and re-energize the country after years of unrest, was moderated by Bin Huraiz.
He said that Egypt is working to find solutions to these problems. Everyone was concerned that Egyptians wouldn’t be able to withstand all of that pressure. They have withstood an incredible amount of strain, are continuing to do so, and have not given in.”
Turning to the topic of climate change, El Sisi stated that Egypt had long been committed to doing what it could for the environment, had supported the agreement reached in Paris in 2015, and would host the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 2022.
The conclusion of that summit was the establishment of a “loss and damage fund,” which is a compensation fund for developing nations that have been hit the hardest by the effects of climate change. It is still too early to determine the majority of the specifics regarding how the fund will operate. It is anticipated that it will be featured once more at Cop28, which will take place in Dubai this year.
Mr. El Sisi stated that the Egyptian government collaborated with the UAE even before the COP27 conference because “they are always ahead of us.” He was referring to Cop28 when he made the statement, “They will build on that achievement.”
Mr. El Sisi also discussed Egypt’s intention to relocate the nation’s capital to a location other than Cairo. He stated that his administration was making significant efforts to increase the level of automation in the various government services. After the recent earthquake in Syria, he urged that additional aid be sent there as soon as possible.
He concluded by stating that increased trust had recently been established between the government of Egypt and the Egyptian people, but that some individuals had attempted to undermine this trust by spreading “fake news, lies, and fabrications.”
“[For what] Egypt has gone through, [it takes] 10 years to come out of that and revive the economy and renew social activity,” he said.
The World Government Summit takes place in Dubai until Wednesday.