Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi called on Egyptians to preserve their awareness, resilience and unity, saying these qualities form the country’s strongest defence against efforts to undermine the state. He made the appeal at the closing ceremony of Egypt Forum 2026, where he reflected on the country’s political and economic trajectory and defended the government’s programme of state-building.
The ceremony opened with a Quran recitation, followed by a documentary reviewing discussions and proposals raised during the forum. President Sisi also met Mahmoud Mohamed, a deaf and hard-of-hearing young man who had expressed a wish to meet the president in a film shown at the forum’s opening. He greeted Talia, a child who had sung with the opening ceremony’s choir.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly presented a timeline of developments from 2011 to 2014, followed by an interactive review of government projects and initiatives carried out from 2014 to 2026. At the end of his presentation, he gave Sisi a book documenting the government’s work over the past 12 years.
The closing programme also featured a presentation titled “The Journey,” focused on state-building and development projects across several sectors. An economic commentator discussed the energy sector and the economic effects of recent regional crises. Three young commentators then highlighted developments in their fields, while children under the age of 13 shared their hopes for Egypt’s future in a film called “A Generation’s Dream.”
After Madbouly announced the forum’s outcomes, President Sisi invited former electricity minister Mohamed Shaker to discuss the sector’s recent performance. Shaker credited the president with helping secure favourable prices from international companies and addressing electricity shortages. The ceremony also showcased Egyptians who had achieved international success in different fields, and President Sisi posed for a photograph with them.
In his closing remarks, President Sisi said the forum had examined the country’s challenges and achievements and offered a space for discussion about its future. He said he had called for the gathering so Egyptians could better understand the work undertaken by the state and the tasks ahead, adding that protecting the country and shaping its future were shared responsibilities.
The president asked the audience to consider two questions: why the current phase began, and what the country sought to achieve. He described the period following 2011 as a critical moment in Egypt’s modern history, saying the state had come close to collapse. When he assumed office in 2014, he said, the country faced a range of challenges, including terrorism, strained infrastructure, weakened public services and long-standing economic and administrative problems.
President Sisi said the government had faced a choice between concentrating only on immediate stability and tackling chronic problems to lay the foundations for the future. It chose the latter course, he said, pursuing reforms and construction on an accelerated timetable rather than postponing difficult decisions.
He acknowledged that the programme had imposed a heavy cost on citizens and praised Egyptians for bearing the burden with patience and resolve. He described the public as the essential support for the state during a difficult period and said the achievements of recent years belonged to Egyptians as a whole, not solely to the government.
President Sisi also argued that the government and state institutions should not be portrayed as separate from the public or opposed to its interests. He said they were part of the same national community and should work to improve living standards and services within available resources. Attempts to create divisions between institutions and citizens, he warned, could weaken social cohesion and the country’s internal front.
He described the development programme as more than the construction of roads, cities and other projects. Its purpose, he said, was to build the country’s capacity and create opportunities where a road could lead to employment, a factory could provide a livelihood and a school could open a path to future ambitions.
The president said national awareness was a central safeguard, allowing people to understand the scale of challenges and assess them in light of available resources. He acknowledged that no development effort was free of mistakes or difficulties, and said lessons from experience should inform future decisions.
Egypt Forum 2026 ran from October 19 to 24, bringing together government representatives, experts and members of the public for discussions on national priorities. In closing the event, President Sisi returned to his central appeal: Egyptians should remain united and alert, he said, because their resilience and cohesion are vital to protecting the state’s stability.
