President of Egypt and ICAO Secretary General move to strengthen Middle Eastern aviation through heightened cooperation

President of Egypt and ICAO Secretary General move to strengthen Middle Eastern aviation through heightened cooperation 

Renewed agreement reinforces Cairo’s global leadership in air transport 

The President of the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Secretary General of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) are supporting enhanced cooperation to strengthen both Egypt’s leadership role in air transport and aviation’s crucial contributions to economic development worldwide.  

H.E. President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi received Secretary General Juan Carlos Salazar in Cairo on 19 April 2026. The discussions were attended by the Minister of Civil Aviation of Egypt, H.E. Sameh El-Hefny, and Mr. Mohamed Rahma, Director of ICAO’s Air Transport Bureau and Officer-in-Charge of the ICAO Middle East Regional Office.

Secretary General Salazar commended Egypt’s leadership during the recent regional airspace crisis, noting the country’s immediate decision to keep its airspace open and airports on high alert. He praised the Civil Aviation Ministry’s handling of diverted flights, highlighting that Egypt’s support for airlines and passengers helped ensure the safe and orderly continuation of air traffic during an unprecedented disruption.

Salazar emphasized ICAO’s appreciation of the continuous communication and close cooperation of Egyptian authorities, declaring that this partnership helped avert a broader operational crisis.

President El-Sisi acknowledged ICAO’s global leadership in advancing civil aviation and reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to driving economic growth through the development of air transport. He emphasized Egypt’s modernization of infrastructure, improvement of operational efficiency and service quality, and expansion of capacity to meet rising air traffic demand. Salazar reaffirmed ICAO’s commitment to supporting these efforts.

Both sides underscored Egypt's longstanding cooperation with ICAO at both the bilateral and regional levels—particularly as host of the ICAO Regional Office in Cairo since 1953. Egypt and ICAO then renewed these hosting arrangements, with Minister El-Hefny and Secretary General Salazar signing an agreement in the presence of senior officials from both sides.

The renewal reflects ICAO’s confidence in Egypt’s aviation infrastructure and its ongoing regional and global contributions to civil aviation. Following the signing ceremony, Secretary General Salazar and Minister El-Hefny reviewed implementation support and capacity-building programmes and initiatives provided by the Regional Office, and explored how these could contribute further to integrated and efficient air transport for the region.

21 April 2026