CAIRO — As part of efforts to promote dialogue with Sudanese civil parties, an Egyptian civil society delegation — comprised of political, economic, academic and diplomatic figures — headed to Khartoum May 10 to begin an Egyptian-Sudanese civil dialogue, the first of its kind since the outbreak of the Sudanese revolution in December 2019 and the ousting of the Islamist-oriented Omar al-Bashir regime.

The Egyptian civil society delegation said in a press statement, “Global developments are pushing for building regional alliances and cross-border blocs that achieve the common interests of peoples. It is time to prioritize a rational view of the future instead of retracing the past, by setting an advanced agenda for a more mature dialogue, especially since the two [Egyptian and Sudanese] peoples are going through an exceptional period where they are struggling to build a new state based on the values of democracy, justice, citizenship and equality.”

The statement continued, “Dialogue cannot only be between politicians in the two countries, as it should expand to include all components of civil society, the financial and business community, industrialists, economists, intellectuals, academics and the media.”

Ali al-Sharif, former Sudanese diplomat and head of the so-called popular initiative to support Egyptian-Sudanese relations, established in January 2021, told Al-Monitor, “The Egyptian delegation’s visit to Sudan is the first to open a civil dialogue with the political parties and prominent figures in Sudan with the aim to strengthen relations between the two countries and block the way for skeptics and those rejecting Egyptian-Sudanese relations and coordination.”