Leaders of Egyptian expert communities in Western Europe held their first annual conference here late Saturday night to discuss rights of Egyptians abroad and conditions of Egyptian nationals in European nations.

The conference, the first of its kind to be held outside Egypt, tackled the role played by Egyptians expatriates in development in Egypt after the January 25 Revolution in addition to political and economic conditions in Egypt plus the problems facing some Egyptian communities in Europe.

The conference was organized by the general federation of Egyptians in France which is chaired by Rushdi el-Shafie and includes heads of 15 associations and leagues in France and Monaco.

The conference was attended by Egyptian expat delegations from 11 European countries, namely France, England, The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Northern Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Austria, Switzerland and Spain.