Óscar Puente signs a Memorandum of Understanding with Egypt to strengthen collaboration in the development of infrastructure and transport

The Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, at the signing of agreements with the Government of Egypt (Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa)

The Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Egyptian Minister for Transport, Kamel El-Wazir, to strengthen the collaboration between the two countries in the development of infrastructures and transport, paying special attention to the railway, a mode of transport the Egyptian government is strongly committed to.

The bilateral relationship between Spain and Egypt has recently been strengthened. A good example of this is that the president has visited Egypt four times in recent years.

The main objective of the meeting was to elevate the relationship between Spain and Egypt to Strategic Partnership, the highest level of bilateral relations that Spain can maintain with another country.

Memorandum

The agreement covers the entire field of transport and infrastructure, with the exception of aviation, which in Egypt is the responsibility of another ministry. Specifically, it focuses on railways, a sector in which the Egyptian government plans to invest heavily to develop passenger and freight trains, the metro and the tramway, and in which both public and private Spanish companies have extensive international experience, in addition to a significant presence and interests in Egypt. The focus is also on improving the socio-economic and environmental sustainability of transport and infrastructure, a key area for strengthening social cohesion and territorial development, and improving quality of life.

The memorandum envisages that the two countries will collaborate in the exchange of best practices and the development of pilot projects, and in the provision of advisory services and technical assistance for the preparation and implementation of projects and work in the field of research, technological development and innovation.

The areas of collaboration mentioned in the Memorandum of Understanding include:

• Planning, design, construction, supervision, commissioning, maintenance and operation of urban, conventional, high-speed and narrow-gauge railway infrastructures
• Preparation and management of rail traffic operation, train engineering and maintenance, workshop design, training of railway staff and commissioning of rail traffic management systems, such as ERTMS, track and on-board
• Railway innovation in its various fields: infrastructure, facilities, rolling stock, auxiliary material, systems, operation, maintenance and safety
• Planning, design, construction, maintenance and operation of road and motorway infrastructure
• Planning, design, construction, supervision, commissioning and operation of urban and interurban transport services and infrastructures
• Planning, management and regulation of the road transport services sector
• Promotion of maritime transport
• Cooperation and knowledge exchange in the field of green ports and sustainable maritime transport
• Design, projects, planning, construction, supervision, commissioning and operation of port infrastructure and logistics platforms
• Management and development of training and capacity building programmes for transport professionals
• Digitalisation and new technologies in the field of transport, mobility and logistics

Non official translation