São Paulo – Egypt celebrated its National Day on Thursday evening (16) at a reception held at its embassy in Brasília. Officially observed on July 23, the occasion marks the 1952 Egyptian Revolution. In her remarks, Ambassador Mai Taha Khalil highlighted more than a century of diplomatic relations with Brazil, which have recently deepened following Egypt’s accession to the BRICS group and the New Development Bank (NDB), as well as its participation in the G20, BRICS and COP30 summits hosted by Brazil over the past three years.
BRICS is the group of developing countries comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Iran. The NDB is the bloc’s development bank. Egypt attended the G20 Summit in 2024 at the invitation of host country Brazil, participated in the BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro in July last year, and took part in COP30 in Belém in November.
In his remarks at the event, Ambassador Carlos Duarte, Secretary for Africa and the Middle East at Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said trade between the two countries has grown in recent years to more than USD 5 billion, driven by the implementation of the free trade agreement between Egypt and Mercosur, the customs bloc comprising Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Signed in 2010, the agreement entered into force in 2017 and has gradually reduced tariffs on trade between Egypt and Mercosur countries. The remaining tariffs are set to be eliminated by the end of this year.
The Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) was represented at the event by its Vice President of International Relations and Secretary-General, Mohamad Orra Mourad. He noted that the gathering underscored the importance both countries place on maintaining close ties. Representatives of Mauritania, Tunisia, Algeria, Sudan, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the League of Arab States were also in attendance among the Arab diplomatic missions in Brazil.
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
