Egypt’s ICT Minister Opens CAISEC 2026 Under Prime Minister Patronage With Participation From 22 Countries and 15 Arab and African Cybersecurity Authorities
Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Eng. Raafat Hindy, officially inaugurated the fifth edition of the CAISEC cybersecurity summit and exhibition, one of the largest cybersecurity and digital sovereignty events in Africa and the Arab world.
Held under the patronage of Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, the summit opened in Cairo with support from 10 Egyptian ministries and the participation of representatives from 22 countries and 15 Arab and African cybersecurity authorities.
The two-day event, taking place on June 8 and 9 under the theme “Guarding the Future: Securing the Unpredictable,” focuses on strengthening regional digital sovereignty and addressing emerging cybersecurity challenges driven by artificial intelligence and accelerating digital transformation.
The opening ceremony featured keynote speeches from senior officials representing Egypt, Africa, Europe, and the Arab region, including Eng. Raafat Hindy, Minister of Communications and Information Technology; Mohamed Ben Amor, Director General of the Arab Information and Communication Technologies Organization (AICTO); Dr. Rami Ahmed Fathy, Senior International Cooperation Expert for Cybersecurity at Egypt’s National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA); and Lacina Koné, Director General and CEO of Smart Africa.
Additional speakers included Divine Selase Agbeti, Director General of Ghana’s Cyber Security Authority and President of ANCA; Dr. Jan Ellsberger, Director General of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI); Dr. Islam Azzam, Chairman of Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority; Brigadier General Ahmed Mohamed Anani representing the Ministry of Defense and Military Production; and Dr. Sherif Hazem, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt for Cybersecurity.
The summit also featured participation from leading technology and cybersecurity executives, including Mohamed Amin, Senior Vice President at Dell Technologies; Ibrahim Sarhan, Chairman of eFinance Investment Group; Mohamed El-Mofty, CEO of ICT Misr; Mohamed Kamel, General Manager of Cisco for Egypt, Libya, and Sudan; Beshoy Wasfy, Chief Information Security Officer at CyShield; and Khaled Fawzy, General Manager for Egypt, Libya, and Sudan at Fortinet.
During his opening remarks, Minister Raafat Hindy emphasized that digital security has become a cornerstone of modern economies as data and technology increasingly drive economic growth and critical services.
He stated that Egypt continues implementing its national cybersecurity strategy while working on developing the third version of the strategy to strengthen the country’s cyber resilience and preparedness.
“The state is actively enhancing the readiness of vital sectors while improving prevention, response, and recovery capabilities to address evolving cyber threats,” Hindy said.
The minister also highlighted Egypt’s efforts to strengthen digital sovereignty, expand data center infrastructure, and prepare for future technological challenges, including quantum computing.
He revealed that Egypt has accredited 45 cybersecurity service providers and continues investing heavily in cybersecurity awareness and digital capacity building through initiatives such as the “Wa3i” platform focused on online safety and youth protection.
Hindy stressed that international cooperation and regional partnerships have become essential to confronting cross-border cyber threats and securing sustainable digital ecosystems.
Osama Kamal, Chairman of Mercury Communications and organizer of CAISEC 2026, said the summit reflects how technology has evolved into the core infrastructure powering all sectors and economies.
Kamal noted that CAISEC was first launched in 2022 during a period marked by escalating global cybersecurity tensions following the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
“Crises create opportunities and accelerate the necessity for development. It is now time for Africa and the Arab world to play a leading role in shaping the future of global digital transformation in cooperation with international partners,” Kamal said.
He added that digital sovereignty for Arab and African countries has become just as important as territorial sovereignty, requiring nations to remain fully aligned with rapid developments in cybersecurity and information security.
During the ceremony, Kamal presented Minister Raafat Hindy with the “Horus Statue,” symbolizing protection and strength, which serves as the official emblem of this year’s summit.
CAISEC 2026 is hosting the first regional cybersecurity roundtable bringing together representatives from 22 countries to strengthen cyber cooperation and support digital sovereignty initiatives across Africa and the Arab world.
The summit is organized in partnership with AICTO and the African Network of Cybersecurity Authorities (ANCA), with participation from 15 African and Arab cybersecurity agencies and institutions.
The conference agenda includes closed-door sessions dedicated to the banking sector, telecommunications and ICT, aviation, and oil and gas industries, alongside discussions covering AI-driven cyber threats, deepfake technologies, cloud security, security operations centers (SOC), and the governance challenges associated with Agentic AI systems capable of autonomous decision-making.
International cybersecurity agencies participating in the summit include Tunisia’s National Cybersecurity Agency (ANCS), Côte d'Ivoire’s National Cybersecurity Center (CNAC), Ghana’s National Cyber Security Centre (NC3), France’s National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI), and cybersecurity representatives from Congo, Niger, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The event is also supported by several international cybersecurity organizations operating in Egypt, including CSA Egypt Chapter, ISACA Cairo Chapter, ACFE Egypt Chapter, and OWASP Egypt.
This year’s edition is backed by more than 60 sponsoring companies and is expected to attract over 5,000 attendees, 40 exhibitors, and more than 180 speakers.
Major sponsors include Dell Technologies, Cisco, Raya Information Technology, CyShield, Fortinet, ICT Misr, IoT Misr, eFinance Investment Group, Microsoft, Liquid C2, Orange Business, Group-IB, CyberKnight, IBM, Noventiq, Palo Alto Networks, Kaspersky, Cloudflare, Akamai, Veeam, Proofpoint, CrowdStrike, and several other regional and international cybersecurity firms.