The event kicked off with welcoming words by Dr Carsten Walbiner (Director of the DAAD Regional Office Cairo and Ms Lorena Mohr (Head of Science and Protocol at the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany to Egypt), and Ms Hoda El Mahgoub (Head of Cairo Liaison Office, Freie Universität Berlin), who illustratively underlined the importance of cooperation across countries is in the health sector.

“Illnesses do not care about borders”, Lorena Mohr (Head of Science and Protocol at the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany to Egypt), affirmed. Prior to the panel discussion, the audience received valuable inputs through short presentations by Prof. Dr Burkhard Kleuser, and Prof. Dr Matthias F. Melzig (FU-Berlin) who spoke about obesity and diabetes and related pharmaceutical interventions. Followed by a presentation by Prof. Dr Aiman S. El-Khatib, Vice-Chairman of the Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA) who illustratively tackled the role of the institution he works in.

Drawing from the information shared from the thought-provoking presentations, the panel discussion moderated by Ms Hoda El Mahgoub (Head of Cairo Liaison Office, Freie Universität Berlin) delved into insights on pharmaceutical practice and administration, as well as the usage of drugs in Egypt brought into the discussion by Prof. Dr Medhat Al Ghobashy (Chairman Advisor for Regulatory and Reference labs, Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA), Egypt) and Dr Islam Anan (CEO of the pharmaceutical company Accsight). During the panel discussion, the public health concern of metabolic syndrome was outlined as a burden and a growing concern in both Germany and Egypt, which necessitates the existence of a comprehensive approach that targets the underlying metabolic abnormalities and associated risk factors and tracks the latest advancements in the diagnosis, management, and research of metabolic syndrome.

The event met its expectations and served as a networking platform between researchers from Freie Universität Berlin and Egyptian researchers to discuss further cooperation opportunities. Witnessing the need for further exchange, the event was rounded off with a dinner reception providing further opportunities for networking and exchange to continue embracing knowledge and collaboration in line with the DAAD motto “Change by Exchange”.