Egypt ambassador to Japan meets JICA chief

Egypt's Ambassador to Japan Ismail Khairat has met with JICA President Akihiko Tanaka to discuss ways of boosting cooperation between Egypt and Japan within the upcoming phase.
The Japanese official welcomed opening a new page in ties between Egypt and Japan when the Japanese premier visited Egypt in January.
Khairat, meanwhile, hailed the distinguished ties binding Egypt and Japan along with JICA's role in supporting Egypt through a number of national projects within the past years, including Cairo Opera House, Abul-Reish Hospital for Children, al Salam Bridge along with several projects to develop infrastructure, according to a statement distributed by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry on Thursday.
The Egyptian government attaches great importance to a number of ongoing projects, including the Grand Egyptian Museum, Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology and the first phase of fourth metro line, he added.
He also welcomed the signing of a loan agreement with Japan, on the sidelines of Egypt Economic Development Conference, which is related to new Dirout canal project that will contribute to raising the efficiency of the irrigation water.
Egypt hopes that JICA will be on the forefront in making use of the mega projects, which was announced during the EEDC, especially the New Suez Canal Project.
For his part, the JICA's chief voiced appreciation of the projects which they carried out in Egypt to develop the Egyptian economic.
He also underlined the importance of Egypt's stability, given its crucial role in the region.
He also cited remarks made by the Japanese prime minister during his visit to Egypt in 2015, who said that Egypt is a main partner for Japan in the Middle East.