Your Excellency, President Xi Jinping, Chairman of the Current BRICS Summit,

Your Excellencies, Heads of Member States and Friendly Countries,

Let me start by extending my greetings and appreciation to you all, and by expressing my sincere gratitude to Your Excellency, President Xi Jinping, and your friendly country, for this kind invitation. Such invite calls Egypt to participate in the high-level dialogue session on global development, within the framework of the "BRICS Plus" Summit.

I am privileged to participate in the BRICS Conference for the second time after my contribution in the ninth summit of the BRICS in the fraternal country of China in 2017. It is also my pleasure to participate in the two summits upon the invitation of my brother, President Xi Jinping.

I would also like to express my appreciation for BRICS gathering for increasingly soaring high, day after day, at the international arena. This is achieved, in view of the economies of BRICS countries that represent more than 20% of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP), in addition to their political and economic weight at the international fora, and their noticeable role in boosting intra-South countries cooperation.

I would also like to seize this opportunity to express Egypt's sincere appreciation for the global development initiative. Such an initiative  that has been put forward by the friendly state of China with the aim of refocusing on development issues, through revitalizing the international development cooperation.

I would also like to express Egypt's appreciation and content to join the membership of the New Development Bank in December 2021, which can contribute, through the financial instruments it provides, to increasing interaction between the BRICS countries and other developing countries that are not members of the grouping.

Egypt's accession to the membership of the Bank at this time is an evidence of the strength and resilience of the Egyptian economy, and its ability to withstand shocks and overcome challenges. We look forward to the support of the Bank to the Egyptian efforts in achieving sustainable development, attracting foreign investments and enhancing the role of the private sector.

Furthermore, Egypt has worked to localize industry and maximize exports. It has also increased social protection and pension fund allocations, while continuing to implement initiatives aimed at supplementing the achievement of comprehensive and sustainable development goals, such as the "Decent Life" and "100 Million Healthy Lives" initiatives. Simultaneously, Egypt has consistently sought to become a renewable energy hub by diversifying its production sources and expanding production of green hydrogen, solar energy, and wind energy.

Your Excellencies,

Egypt appreciates the BRICS' keenness to adopt a common vision on political and economic issues of concern to developing countries, particularly in terms of development cooperation and the support of  development financing.

In this regard, I would like to emphasize that efforts to address the consequences of the current economic crisis should not come at the expense of supporting sustainable development in developing and less developed countries, which still suffer from underfunding for development. This hinders their efforts to make tangible progress towards the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. Furthermore, the international community as a whole must also engage more effectively and positively in efforts to enable developing countries to achieve development and obtain the necessary funding.

In this regard, I would also like to emphasize that achievement of development goals must occur in parallel with the synergy of all international efforts to address the various challenges, the most pressing of which are terrorism and climate change.

Terrorism remains one of the most serious challenges confronting humanity today, as it violates citizens' fundamental rights, particularly the right to life, and impedes governments' efforts to achieve their peoples' economic and social goals.

Egypt emphasizes the importance of taking a comprehensive approach, encompassing multiple dimensions, to drain the sources of terrorism, prevent the provision of financing, safe havens, and information platforms to terrorist organizations, and address economic and social conditions and factors that motivate some to radicalize and join terrorist groups. It is an approach that requires intensified international cooperation to ensure the sustainability of international peace and security.

With regard to climate change, its negative effects on our planet have become a reality. Its impact hinders our development plans, and threatens water and food security worldwide; thus increasing the frequency and complexity of conflicts, and leads to a rise in illegal immigration and internal displacement.

Egypt, in its capacity as the next president of the World Climate Change Summit "COP-27", will make every effort to achieve consensus among all parties interested in international climate action, especially with regard to the efforts of reducing emissions. In addition to supporting and enhancing the efforts of the developing and the least developed countries to adapt to the negative effects of climate change, reduce its negative repercussions and address the losses and damages; thus contributing to the implementation of the previous commitments and pledges and turning them into a tangible reality.

In this vein, I am looking forward to welcoming you all at the Leaders’ Summit in November 2022 to reaffirm the solidarity and determination of the international community to push forward all aspects of global climate action and to show the importance we attach to confronting climate change, at all levels.

Your Excellencies,

Finally, I would like to assure you that we are looking forward to strengthening the bonds of cooperation between Egypt and the ‘’BRICS’’ gathering so as to benefit from its experiences in all fields related to achieving economic growth and sustainable development; thus realizing the hopes and aspirations of our peoples towards a better future.

Thank You