Egypt's Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation, Rania A. Al-Mashat, launched a workshop to evaluate the mid-term progress of the joint country strategy for development cooperation between Egypt and the African Development Bank (AfDB) for the period 2022-2026. The workshop, held in Cairo, brought together representatives from various Egyptian ministries and the AfDB, including Kevin Oramah, Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management of the African Development Bank, and Abdourahmane Diaw, Country Manager of the Bank in Egypt. Al-Mashat highlighted the importance of the partnership with the AfDB, noting that it aligns with Egypt's national development strategies, including Vision 2030 and the National Climate Change Strategy 2050. She also emphasized the long-term nature of the partnership, stating that Egypt is one of the founding members of the AfDB and contributed 12.5% of its capital. Since the launch of the country strategy in 2022, the AfDB has financed 14 operations for the public and private sectors, worth $1.46bn. The partnership has strengthened development efforts in the areas of food security, private sector development, water desalination, water treatment, and renewable energy projects. Al-Mashat also highlighted the Ministry's efforts to align concessional development funding with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), enhance project monitoring through the AIMS electronic project monitoring system, and promote transparency and accountability in development projects. The Minister reviewed the government's new program for the period 2024-2027, which includes four major objectives: investing in human capital, building a competitive economy that attracts investments, industrial development, and entrepreneurship. Al-Mashat further commended the collaboration with the AfDB within the framework of the country platform for the "NWFE" program, which aims to address water security challenges. The AfDB is the main development partner in the water sector, including the establishment of five water desalination stations using solar energy in four different governorates, with a total capacity of up to 525,000 cubic meters per day. Oramah applauded the ongoing reforms in Egypt to implement transformational economic programs, noting that Egypt's economic outlook remains positive and that there are expectations of increased growth based on a set of important economic reforms that have been implemented in the country. He stressed the bank's commitment to continue working with Egypt to build economic resilience and enhance the business environment to attract the private sector. The workshop served as a platform to review the progress made under the joint country strategy and discuss future collaboration between Egypt and the AfDB. The partnership has resulted in financing more than 128 operations for the public and private sectors, worth $7.79bn, across various sectors including agriculture, industry, energy, transportation, water, developing the financial system, increasing access to financing for small, medium and micro enterprises, and the water and sanitation sector.
