The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) has held a number of meetings with a high-level delegation from the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT), and China Electronic Standardization Institute (CESI), during its visit to Egypt, on May 26-27.

The visit comes in the framework of implementing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed by Egypt and China last April, during the participation of the Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat in the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) in Beijing.

During the meetings, the two sides discussed enhancing cooperation in ICTs, as well as a number of topics of common interest. Topics included designing and establishing smart villages, raising efficacy of the communications infrastructure, digital transformation, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and High-Performance Computing (HPC).

Moreover, the delegation showcased the CAICT and CESI activities, and put an action mechanism to implement the MoU. The mechanism comprised forming a joint working group, and holding an annual meeting to review what has been achieved and develop scenarios for cooperation in the coming period.

In addition, the two sides agreed on discussing proposals of cooperation in capacity building in AI, Internet of Things (IoT), and blockchain. The delegation, also, proposed providing educational programs to young Egyptian calibers in seven Chinese specialized universities that have special educational programs in AI, blockchain, and IoT.

The Egyptian side called on the Chinese to carry out an educational program for graduates in data science and other areas, and a joint research and development (R&D) program, in addition to exchanging expertise in this field.

Furthermore, future cooperation in AI was discussed. Accordingly, a specialized Chinese delegation is due to visit Egypt to discuss cooperation in this area. The two sides, also, discussed future cooperation in capacity building in designing and manufacturing electronics, broadband, and securing networks, in particular for AI.

The delegation, also, held a number of meetings with the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (NTRA) and Telecom Egypt.

From the Egyptian side, the meetings were attended by Deputy ICT Minister for Human and Institutional Capacity Development and Acting CEO of the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) Hala El Gohary, Acting Director of the National Telecommunication Institute (NTI) Iman Ashour, Chairwoman of the Information Technology Institute (ITI) Heba Saleh, Director of International Relations Division at MCIT Mohamed El Gawsaky, ICT Minister's Advisor for Technology Innovation, Electronics and Training Hossam Osman, ICT Minister’s Advisor for Artificial Intelligence (AI) Golestan Radwan, and Silicon Waha Managing Director Sameh El Mallah.

From the Chinese side, the meetings were attended by Director of Asia and Africa Division of the International Cooperation Department at MIIT Kai Zheng, Director of Institute of Security Research at CAICT Wei Liang, Deputy Director of Industry and Planning Research at CAICT Hui Chen, CAICT Engineer Heng Cao, and Senior Engineer of Industry and Planning Research Institute at CAICT Xiangqun Li.