Speaking alongside Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan in Dar es Salaam, Sisi said Cairo was exploring the launch of a large-scale agricultural reclamation project in Tanzania.
Sunday 19/07/2026
Towards boosting food security and regional trade
Egypt is seeking to expand its economic footprint in East Africa through agricultural investment, logistics infrastructure and closer cooperation on Nile water issues after President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced a series of initiatives during a visit to Tanzania aimed at strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries.
Speaking alongside Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan in Dar es Salaam, Sisi said Cairo was exploring the launch of a large-scale agricultural reclamation project in Tanzania to improve food security for both countries while laying the foundations for future agricultural exports.
“We discussed opportunities to launch an agricultural land reclamation project in Tanzania with the aim of achieving food security for both countries and meeting national demand for essential and strategic crops,” Sisi said after bilateral and expanded talks between the two delegations.
He said the project could be expanded in successive phases before eventually moving into export-oriented production.
The initiative forms part of a broader package of economic agreements announced during the visit, as Egypt seeks to deepen commercial and strategic ties with one of East Africa’s fastest-growing economies.
Following the talks, the two presidents oversaw the signing of memorandums of understanding covering transport, electricity and renewable energy, while ministers from both countries also agreed to advance joint projects in agriculture, livestock, ports and infrastructure.
Sisi said Egypt was ready to participate in expanding and modernising the Port of Dar es Salaam, one of East Africa’s busiest maritime gateways, arguing that the project should be integrated into a wider regional logistics network linking Tanzania with neighbouring countries.
The Egyptian president also proposed establishing a direct shipping route between Egypt’s Red Sea port of Safaga and Dar es Salaam, alongside the development of a multimodal transport corridor connecting Cairo and the Tanzanian commercial capital through a series of joint infrastructure projects.
“We also agreed on projects to develop ports, maritime and rail links, logistics zones, roads and infrastructure, which will facilitate trade and the movement of goods,” Sisi said during a meeting with business leaders from both countries.
More than 35 Egyptian business representatives and around 120 Tanzanian counterparts attended the closing session of the Egypt-Tanzania business forum, where both leaders called for stronger investment and commercial cooperation.
The visit also carried strategic significance beyond trade.
Sisi urged Tanzania to continue playing what he described as a constructive role in promoting dialogue among the countries that share the Nile River, highlighting Cairo’s longstanding call for greater cooperation among Nile Basin states.
“I look forward to strengthening Tanzania’s positive and constructive role based on encouraging mutual understanding and the spirit of cooperation among our brothers in the Nile Basin,” he said.
The comments come as Egypt continues diplomatic efforts to safeguard its water interests following years of disagreement over the management of shared Nile re
Tanzania is one of the 11 countries of the Nile Basin Initiative, alongside Burundi, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Eritrea, South Sudan, Sudan and Egypt.
Cairo has repeatedly expressed concern over the Entebbe Agreement, signed by several upstream Nile Basin countries, arguing that it could undermine Egypt’s historical share of Nile waters, estimated at 55 billion cubic metres annually and regarded as the country’s principal freshwater source.
In October 2024, Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resider their positions and resume negotiations aimed at reaching a consensus-based framework for managing the river
During the visit, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan praised the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Project, which was built by Egyptian companies and has become one of the flagship symbols of economic cooperation between the two countries.
Egypt signed the contract to construct the 2,115-megawatt hydroelectric dam in 2018, while then Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry attended the launch of the reservoir filling in 2022.
The project has frequently been cited by both governments as evidence of their growing development partnership across Africa.
Sisi’s visit, his second to Tanzania after a landmark trip in 2017 that marked the first by an Egyptian president in nearly five decades, reflects Cairo’s broader strategy of expanding its diplomatic and economic engagement across sub-Saharan Africa.
Trade between Egypt and Tanzania reached $12.3 million in the first quarter of this year, while Egyptian exports to Tanzania increased by 3.2 percent with both governments seeking to accelerate that growth through new investments, infrastructure projects and closer economic integration
