Al Ahrar, P.6 (13-8-2008)

The Ambassador of New Delhi in Cairo: 35% increase in tourist arrivals from India to Egypt

By: Mohammed El Ramah

Ambassador of India in Cairo Mr. A. Gopinathan confirmed that the Egyptian-Indian relations have witnessed a significant expansion in recent years and this was reflected in the high-level visits exchanged between the two sides.

In a press conference was held at the premises of the Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture in Cairo on the occasion of the 61st anniversary of the Independence Day of India, the Indian Ambassador said that three Egyptian ministers visited India this year and also five ministers from India visited Egypt.

As far as bilateral economic and commercial relations between the two countries are concerned, the Indian Ambassador said that these relations have witnessed remarkable growth during the last period, particularly during the period from April 2007 to March 2008. Bilateral trade between India and Egypt registered US$ 2.54 billion out of which US$ 1.89 billion for petroleum exports from Egypt to India, while the Indian exports to Egypt during the same period amounted to US$ 582 million. The Egyptian non-petroleum exports to India reached US$ 125 million. He added that the Indian investments in Egypt are currently around US$ 750 million and they are expected to reach US$ 2 billion within the next two years.

Mr. Gopinathan referred to people-to-people contacts, which have remarkably developed during the last period, as the number of Indian tourists, who visited Egypt in 2007 reached 81,000 with a 35% increase compared to the year 2006 in which 61,000 Indian tourists visited Egypt.

The Indian Ambassador also referred to the close cooperation and coordination between Egypt and India in the UN and its different agencies, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and other international multilateral forums. Recently, the two countries cooperated during the latest round of the talks of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

He further added that India has demonstrated that poverty need not be a hindrance to the flourishing of democracy. He stressed that democracy and economic growth are compatible. He underlined that the Indian economy has been growing over the past five years at the spectacular rate ranging between 9-10%. In this regard, the Indian Ambassador said, "I would like to refer to the fact that food and fuel prices have enormously increased since the beginning of this year and this has an adverse inflationary impact on the economy. However, the Indian government is doing its best in order to contain this increase in inflation rate."