At the end of his trip to Egypt, Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder visited the Khan Al-Khalili bazaar and the historic Saladin Citadel in the old town of Cairo. The CSU boss took the opportunity to buy a new cup for his collection. Previously, Söder had, among other things, taken a boat trip on the Nile and visited representatives of Coptic Christians. “One in ten people in Egypt is Copt. Christians here used to be oppressed, but now have a guaranteed position. This is an encouraging signal,” said Söder.
Bavaria supports the Coptic community together with the Catholic relief organization Missio: “We help children with intellectual disabilities, for example with everyday life, education, health care and physiotherapy. This is a sign of charity and a reminder that living conditions in many parts of the world are much more difficult than here.” In general, Söder was very satisfied with how his three-day trip to the North African country went. “One prime minister, five ministers, to be honest, not much more is possible,” said Söder. He hopes that Bavaria and Egypt can now open a new chapter in their cooperation.
There is a lot more going on in Egypt than many people in Germany would think. “It is actually a mistake that Germany was not present here for too long. The Federal President was there a few weeks ago, and now my humble self is there too. That means we are opening the doors to a new chapter,” said Söder. He believes that there are many opportunities for Bavaria in Egypt – economically and also to combat the shortage of skilled workers.
“At the same time, it remains the case that there is a really important partner in the Middle East and we all hope that not only will economic developments arise, but that there will soon be a de-escalation of violence in the entire region.”