CAIRO, May 22 (MENA) - Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates Affairs Badr Abdelatty assigned Assistant Foreign Minister for African Affairs Ihab Awad to participate in a ceremony held Thursday at Cairo International Airport (CIA) to inaugurate sustainable routes designated for citizens holding African Union (AU) nationalities.

The ceremony was attended by a number of African ambassadors accredited to Cairo, as well as officials from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Ministry of Interior.

The move comes within the framework of Egypt's celebrations of Africa Day, which falls on May 25 of each year, coinciding with the founding anniversary of the Organization of African Unity (OAU).

It also reflects the steady momentum in Egyptian-African relations, both at the level of high-level visits to the various parts of the continent and in connection with strengthening popular communication, Awad said.

He said the initiative comes as part of the Egyptian government's efforts to respond to the steady increase in visits by African visitors to Egypt by facilitating their entry and providing them with a warm welcome at CIA.

It also falls within the context of a wide range of steps currently being taken by State institutions to strengthen Egyptian-African cooperation, Awad said.

He said State institutions are keen on implementing presidential directives to strengthen Egyptian-African relations at the official level, as well as to increase popular ties between Egypt and its African brethren, including facilitating medical and conference tourism and increasing scholarships for African brethren.

All efforts are meant to support African integration and unity at both the popular and official levels and help the continent's countries cooperate to address multiple challenges countering them, added the ambassador. (MENA)

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