More than 2 mn Egyptians could return to work in Libya in the next three years as part of a reconstruction plan that aims to provide skilled Egyptian workers access to Libya’s labor market, Hamdy Imam, head of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce’s expat employment division, told Masrawy. There were more than 3 mn Egyptians working in Libya before the 2011 Libya revolt, according to Imam, but that figure plunged amid the ongoing tensions and political-military instability in the country.

A cabinet committee will outline a framework for the return of Egyptian workers to Libya and lay out measures to ease travel between the two countries, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said during a meeting of the Council of Ministers today.

Background: The news follows Madbouly’s visit to Tripoli, along with 11 members of his cabinet, during which the two countries inked 11 MoUs covering transport, infrastructure, CIT, energy, health and education, as Libya winds down its decade-long civil war. The two sides also agreed to revive the Egyptian-Libyan Higher Committee, which had been suspended since 2009. The restoration of Egypt-Libya ties comes as part of Egypt’s push to exercise infrastructure diplomacy and cooperation in the region, which saw Egypt sign a raft of preliminary agreements with Iraq last October covering everything from oil and water resources to construction, housing and transportation.