Major General Mohamed EL- Sherif, governor of Alexandria, inaugurated today the China-Africa Center at the National Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries in Ras Al-Tin area, and also witnessed the signing of a cooperation protocol between the Institute and the organization of Marine Sciences in China, in order to enhance ways of joint cooperation with the Chinese side, and to exchange and transfer research technology and search for the riches of the blue economy of the Seas, not only for Egypt but also to support African countries.
The Governor stressed that the" blue economy " is one of the new directions for investment, especially that the Egyptian state has many elements and opportunities that qualify it strongly towards the blue economy, as it owns 4 thousand km of coastline in addition to 53 ports.
Mr.El-Sherif pointed out that China is one of the largest partners of Egypt and an important strategic ally, and the governments of the two countries have taken many steps to enhance cooperation between them in all fields: economic, trade, and cultural, explaining that for the sake of this vision, Alexandria governorate has recently enjoyed a large share of cooperation with the Chinese side at all levels, stressing that Alexandria welcomes all Chinese delegations wishing to invest on its land in the framework of implementing Egypt's Vision 2030.
During the opening, the Governor inspected the Departments of the center intended for training specialists in the field of Marine Sciences in Africa, as well as the Marine Risk Reduction Center located at the Institute.
It is worth mentioning that the center aims to support studies on climate change, mitigation and Prevention of Marine natural disasters, the development of the blue economy, the protection of the marine environment, and the transfer of technology to young researchers in African countries.
The opening ceremony and signing of the protocol were witnessed by Dr. Amr Zakaria, president of the National Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries, Mr. Jin Hu, Acting Consul General of China in Alexandria, Ms. Fang zhenxia, director of the Institute of Marine Sciences at the Ministry of natural resources of China, Dr. Sameh Riad, head of the Environmental Affairs Authority in Alexandria, and Dr. Abeer Saharty, vice president of the National Institute of marine sciences and Fisheries.