Egypt's Minister of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) Yasser El Kady said Tuesday a visit, currently being paid to Cairo by Russian Minister of Communications and Mass Media Nikolai Nikiforov, establishes a long-term strategic cooperation between the two countries in the field of information technology.

Kady and Nikiforov met in Cairo earlier in the day to discuss ways to boost bilateral cooperation in the ICT areas.

The two ministers witnessed the signing of a Letter of Intent (LOI) to launch a round of negotiations discussing the possibility of reducing international roaming tariffs between the two countries.

The meeting also dealt with means to benefit from Russian investments and experiences in the field of electronics design and manufacturing, and also explored opportunities to benefit from the advanced education and training system in Russia's technology field to train and qualify calibers from Egyptian universities.

Nikiforov has toured the Smart Village and visited the headquarters of Smart Villages Company, the Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CultNat) and the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), to get closely acquainted with the latest developments in Egypt's ICT sector.

The Russian minister is due to visit Wednesday the technology park in Maadi to learn about the Egyptian experience in the field of establishing and managing technological parks, as well as the latest technological support services provided by the companies to their customers around the world via exporting IT services.