International Cooperation Minister Rania Al-Mashat reviewed on Sunday the results of Egypt’s international partnerships in 2020 and 2021 and their role in achieving sustainable development.
The development finances are one of the sources of bridging the financing gap in the state’s general budget, as it records about 15% of Egypt’s external debt, the minister said during her meeting with members of the Committee of the African, Arab and Foreign Affairs of the Senate.
Mashat added that the development finances are correlated with implementing specific projects, taking into consideration governance, transparency, environmental, and social standards.
Mashat pointed out that the USAID is the biggest partner for Egypt in several periods, mentioning Egypt’s international partners including the French Development Agency, the Korean International Cooperation Agency, and other development banks like the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and other international financial institutions.
She added that the International Cooperation Ministry’s mission is based on three principles of the economic diplomacy; holding multi-stakeholder meetings between the ministry, government entities, multilateral and bilateral development partners, private sector, and civil society, making sure that development projects set by these meetings are aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) and with Egypt’s Vision 2030, and the Global Partnerships Narrative.
There are more than 377 ongoing projects, totaling about $26 billion in the ministry’s development cooperation portfolio, she noted.
The share of the private sector in financing during the two years is about $5 billion.
She also said that the international partnerships contribute to implementing the government program in developing Sinai, explaining that about 150 villages benefit from the development finances from the Arab funds.
The ministry is currently working on preparing strategies with development partners for the next five years, she added.
Source: State Information Service Egypt