Dr. Mohamed Salem, the Egyptian minister of communications and information technology (MCIT) and his Ugandan counterpart Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda, have signed a framework agreement on ICT sharing between Egypt and Uganda.

This agreement is part of the framework implement the international cooperation section of the Egyptian MCIT strategy that is looking to target African markets and seeking enhanced cooperation with African governments.

Biztech Africa reported that the MCIT had released a statement saying that the agreement between the two countries reflects the eagerness to build on mutual partnerships and business ventures. It also encourages research and development in infrastructure, technology capacity building, heritage documentation and other fields in the ICT industry.

The five-year agreement is subject to renewal, and both parties have also agreed to exchange best practices to develop an e-portal representing the Uganda heritage. This e-portal will be multi-lingual and support Arabic, English and any other universal language that is agreed upon.

Furthermore, the minister’s have agreed to collaborate on Uganda’s emergency cyber response unit and other skill building initiatives.