Egyptian Parliamentary Delegation Visits Washington, DC

A delegation of members of the Egyptian Parliament met with the U.S. Congress, the U.S. State Department and Washington, DC think tanks throughout the week of June 12 to educate these audiences on recent events in Egypt and the importance of advancing bilateral relations. The 14-member delegation of parliamentarians was led by Dr. Ahmed Said, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and included representatives from the parliament’s education, planning and budget, economic, Arab affairs and local development committees. During their week in Washington, DC, the delegation met with more than 15 House and Senate members and their staffs, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, the London Center for Policy Research, the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA) and the Wounded Warrior Project. “There are 14 people in this delegation from different disciplines in the Egyptian Parliament, and we decided to talk to [U.S. Congressional leaders] and invite them to come to Egypt, and invite them to come to Parliament,” said Dr. Said. “We were aiming to have very constructive discussions.” The visit was the first by a delegation of Egyptian parliamentarians since the country adopted a new constitution in 2014 and held elections for the legislative branch the following year. The current Egyptian Parliament is the most diverse in the country’s history, with representation by women, Coptic Christians and millennials. While in the U.S., the delegation sought to inform their counterparts in Washington that the Parliament is an equal branch of government with the executive, and is involved in all areas of public policy — from economic reform to civil society and international relations. “We are talking about population growth. We’re talking about education reform, security reform. We’re talking about economic reform. We’re talking about institutional reform, rural development and, of course, counterterrorism, not to say the least,” said Dalia Youssef, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee. “It was important to come out here, explain our challenges, get the American take on it, and feel that we are aligned on one side to move forward.” Members of the visiting delegation included: • Dr. Ahmed Said, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee • Ahmed El Siginy, chairman of the Local Development Committee • Saad El Gammal; chairman of Arab Affairs Committee • Gamal Shiha: chairman of Education Committee • Tarek Radwan, deputy chairman of Foreign Affairs Committee • Tarek El Khouly, secretary of the Foreign Affairs Committee • Dr. AmnaNosseir, member of Foreign Affairs Committee • Dalia Youssef, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee • Dr. Imad Gad: member of the Foreign Affairs Committee • SamiaRafla, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee • Dr. Pacinthe Fahmy, member of the Economic Committee • Karim Salem, member of Planning & Budget Committee • Mohamed El Sewedy, president of the Majority Coalition in parliament • Dr. Abdelhady Al Kasaby, chairman of the Social Solidarity Committee