Sudanese Health Minister Abdullah Tia met on Monday with his Egyptian counterpart, Hatem al-Gebali, in Cairo to discuss cooperation between the two countries in the field of medicine.
Tia told al-Gebali that 17 percent of medicine used in Sudan is exported from Egypt, and stressed the importance of increasing investment in the field, as well as treating more Sudanese patients in Egyptian hospitals.
Tia also requested a decrease in tuition fees for Sudanese medical students studying in Egypt, and asked for more medical scholarships to be funded by the Egyptian Health Ministry.
Around 280 Sudanese students are currently enrolled in fellowships in Egypt, according to al-Gebali, who added that Egyptian medical convoys to Darfur will continue until mid 2011.
Al-Gebali also mentioned that more clinics are being established in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
Both ministers reviewed the medical cooperation protocol signed between Egypt and Sudan, hours before President Hosni Mubarak travels to Sudan to discuss southern referendum developments with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi.
