Egypt to observe anniversary of Indian assistance programme

Rania

Cairo, Oct 9 (PTI) India and Egypt will mark the 45th
anniversary of a path-breaking Indian programme for
development and economic assistance to developing countries,
that has also benefited scores of Egyptians.

A function will be organised on October 12, marking the
anniversary of the launching of the Indian Technical and
Economic Cooperation programme (ITEC) which was launched in
1964 as a bilateral programme of assistance of the government
of India.

Egyptian Minister of State for Administrative
Development, Ahmed Darwish, will inaugurate the ceremony.

"More than 120 Egyptians benefited from the program's
training sessions and an additional 45 Egyptians get a boon
from the programme this year," a statement by the Indian
embassy in Cairo said Friday.

Under ITEC and its corollary SCAAP (Special Commonwealth
Assistance for Africa Programme), 156 countries in Asia, East
Europe, Central Asia, Africa and Latin America are invited to
share in the Indian developmental experience acquired over
five decades of India's existence as a free nation.

ITEC is about cooperation and partnership for mutual
benefit. It is response oriented and it addresses the needs of
developing countries.

India, which possess skills of manpower and technology
more appropriate to the geographical and ecological conditions
and the stage of technological development of several
developing countries, spends about Rs 500 million annually on
ITEC activities. (MORE) PTI