Ambassador Ahmed Hafez convenes African missions in Ottawa to back the continental development agenda

By Tahani Elghazaly
Published April 15, 2026

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In a diplomatic move linking Egypt’s presence in Ottawa with Africa’s development priorities, Ambassador Ahmed Hafez hosted African ambassadors and heads of mission in the Canadian capital for a working lunch with Nardos Bekele-Thomas, CEO of the African Union Development Agency, AUDA-NEPAD, during her first visit to Canada.

During the meeting, Hafez reaffirmed Egypt’s support for the agency’s efforts to advance African aspirations, while highlighting Cairo’s role during its three-year chairmanship of the agency’s steering committee of heads of state and government, as well as several initiatives launched or further developed during that period. AUDA-NEPAD is the African Union’s development agency and is mandated to strengthen the capacities of member states and regional bodies in support of Agenda 2063.

The discussion focused on the agency’s role in driving Africa’s social and economic transformation and on how to turn continental ambitions into more concrete outcomes. Seen in that light, the gathering was more than a routine diplomatic courtesy call; it also reflected a broader push to keep Africa’s development agenda visible within Ottawa’s diplomatic and economic conversations.

Hafez closed the meeting by pointing to Egypt’s planned Africa Business Forum on the sidelines of the African Union Mid-Year Coordination Summit in El Alamein this June, stressing the importance of engaging the Canadian private sector around the event. The African Union has said the summit-related meetings in El Alamein will run from June 24 to 27, 2026, alongside the inaugural Africa Business Summit, giving the Ottawa meeting a wider economic and strategic context.