The second Egypt Defence Expo (Edex) will open in November and involve more than 400 manufacturers and suppliers from around the world, the organisers said on Sunday. Some of the biggest names in defence and security will show their products from November 29 to December 2 at New Cairo’s Egypt International Exhibition Centre. Live demonstrations of firepower are planned for all five days. According to the event’s organisers, Edex 2021 is expected to host more than 30,000 people working for the defence industry, as well as government ministers and military chiefs, providing an opportunity for networking and sharing expertise. Producers of surveillance and survival equipment and defence-related software will be taking part alongside makers of more conventional military equipment. A display of the latest in drone technology was one of the highlights of the first expo in 2018, featuring miniature, remote-controlled vehicles built for land, sea or air. The organisers said the expo is being held at the behest of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, and one of its goals is to demonstrate Egypt's place as a military power in the region. With a total of 1.3 million personnel, 450,000 of whom are on active service, the armed forces play an important part in the Egyptian political landscape. Egypt’s military is ranked in 13th place on the Global Firepower Index, with a score of 0,2216 (a perfect score on the index is 0), with a defence budget of about $10 billion for 2021, according to GFI. Egypt added a German-built S44 submarine to its navy last month, which it said would be used to protect the country’s economic interests in the Suez Canal, the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. In March, the military signed a $4.5bn deal with France for 30 Dassault Rafale fighter jets, to be delivered by 2026.