Egypt, Germany agree on development funds and grants worth 151 million euros for 15 projects

CAIRO – 18 August 2021: Egypt and Germany agreed on allocating soft development funds worth EUR 151.5 million from the German side to finance 15 development projects across sectors of technical education, vocational training, and innovation in the private sector, migration, labor, administrative reform, urban development, and renewable energy, according to Ministry of International Cooperation.

The ministry added that this comes within the framework of the joint economic relations between Egypt and Germany, which aims to support Egypt’s Vision 2030 and its endeavors to achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This came during the 2021 annual negotiations’ meetings held between Egypt and Germany, headed by Sherihan Bakhit, Associate Minister handling the Americas and Europe portfolios, from the Egyptian side, and Mario Sander, Head of the Development Cooperation with the Middle-East at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), from the German side. This meeting aimed to set the general framework for the projects that shall be financed through the development financing provided by the Government of Germany to Egypt, and is in light of the framework of the upcoming annual financial and technical cooperation agreements.

The annual meeting came with the participation of 45 representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Electricity and Renewable Energy, Housing, Utilities and Urban Communities, Environment, Trade and Industry, Education, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates's Affairs, Manpower, and Local Development. This is in addition to the Central Agency for Organization & Administration, the Credit Risk Guarantee company, the Financial Regulatory Authority, and Banque du Caire. Moreover, 24 representatives from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ);  the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy; the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety; the German Federal Foreign Office; the German Embassy in Cairo; the  German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ); and the KfW development bank.

This meeting was concluded by an initial signing by the heads of the delegations from the Egyptian and German sides, in preparation for the final signing during the upcoming period in regards to potential cooperation areas between the two countries.

The Ministry of International Cooperation is working towards promoting effective economic and development cooperation with multilateral and bilateral development partners, through the three principles of Economic Diplomacy; Multi Stakeholders Platform, the Official Development Assistance mapping to the Sustainable Development Goals, and the Global Partnerships Narrative that puts “People at Core” threugh “Projects in Action,” with “Purpose as the Driver”.

The ongoing development cooperation portfolio with Germany amounts to EUR 1.7 billion, through which 30 projects were financed in the form of funds, technical support grants, and financial contributions, benefiting many development sectors; such as technical education, vocational training, sewage, irrigation, water support, solid waste management, migration, labor, administrative reform, urban development, gender equality, youth and social development. This is in addition to the EUR 240 million debt-swap program between Germany and Egypt.

During the first half of 2021, 12 development financing agreements worth EUR 197 million were signed within the framework of the joint cooperation strategy with Germany across various priority sectors; pushing towards the achievement of both the local and global development targets.