Egypt explores future areas of cooperation with World Bank

The meeting comes within the framework of the periodic meetings El-Mashat holds with multilateral and bilateral development partners, to develop and support economic relations between Egypt and its partners, advancing Egypt’s Vision 2030 and supporting the UN’s 2030 sustainable development goals (SDGs).

During the meeting, they discussed current projects that are implemented within the framework of the strategic partnership between Egypt and the World Bank in 2021. Last March, the World Bank approved a development financing worth $400 million to support Egypt’s plan to develop the infrastructure of the transportation sector and enhance its sustainability through developing the country’s railways.

They also tackled the development of the ongoing negotiations with the World Bank Group on obtaining development policy financing to support the second phase of structural reforms that the government of Egypt seeks to implement to achieve economic growth; which is based on three pillars: enhancing financial sustainability, pushing for green recovery, enhancing private sector’s engagement in development efforts, and enhancing women’s engagement in the economy.

The minister applauded the successful cooperation between Egypt and the World Bank, which supports Egypt’s efforts to achieve development across several sectors, including transportation, housing and utilities, environment, health, and many other fields of cooperation. El-Mashat also noted that in 2020, the development financing agreements signed with the World bank across different sectors amounted to $1.5 billion.

For her part, Marina Wes, the World Bank Group’s Country Director for Egypt, Yemen and Djibouti, praised cooperation with Egypt as a strategic partner and expressed her aspiration for more cooperation programs in order to support development plans. Wes also applauded the Ministry of International Cooperation’s role in coordinating between several governmental entities to implement effective cooperation programs.

The Ministry of International Cooperation and the World Bank share a portfolio of $5.4 billion, encompassing transportation, education, housing, health, social safety nets, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).