President Jorge Sampaio, former President of Portugal and currently the UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations (AoC), completed a visit to Egypt where he took part in comprehensive talks with the Egyptian side on bilateral, regional and multilateral issues.
Canada Egypt Business Council, had the pleasure of arranging a roundtable discussion over breakfast in honour of President Sampio. Minister Hany Helal, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Minister Ahmed Maher El Sayed, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Ferry de Kerckhove, Ambassador of Canada to Egypt, Amb. Aly Maher, Advisor, European Affairs, Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Amb. Nabil Fahmy, Former Ambassador of Egypt to the U.S, Amb. Wael Abou El Magd, Deputy Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Human Rights, Mr. Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour, Secretary General, El Wafd Party in addition to an esteemed group of the members of the Council. The discussions covered the role and aim of The Alliance of Civilization (AoC), which was established in 2005, at the initiative of the Governments of Spain and Turkey, under the auspices of the United Nations where a High-level Group of experts was formed by former Secretary-General Kofi Annan to explore the roots of polarization between societies and cultures today, and to recommend a practical program of action to address this issue.
The Report of the High-level Group provided analysis and put forward practical recommendations that form the basis for the implementation plan of the Alliance of Civilizations.
On 26 April 2007, former President of Portugal, Jorge Sampaio, was appointed as the High Representative for the AoC by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to lead the implementation phase of the Alliance.
The AoC Secretariat, which is based in New York, works in partnership with States, international and regional organizations, civil society groups, foundations, and the private sector to mobilize concerted efforts to promote cross-cultural relations among diverse nations and communities.

The Alliance is supporting a range of projects and initiatives aimed at building bridges among a diversity of cultures and communities.

President Sampaio highlighted during the meeting that the Alliance functions, both globally and within the UN system, in the following capacities:

• A bridge builder and convener, connecting people and organizations devoted to promoting trust and understanding between diverse communities, particularly but not exclusively between Muslim and Western societies.
• A catalyst and facilitator helping to give impetus to innovative projects aimed at reducing polarization between nations and cultures through joint pursuits and mutually beneficial partnerships.
• An advocate for building respect and understanding among cultures and amplifying voices of moderation and reconciliation which help calm cultural and religious tensions between nations and peoples.
• A platform to increase visibility, enhance the work and highlight the profile of initiatives devoted to building bridges between cultures.
• A resource providing access to information and materials drawn from successful cooperative initiatives which could, in turn, be used by member states, institutions, organizations, or individuals seeking to initiate similar processes or projects.