These remarks came during Al-Mashat’s opening speech at the Green Banks Event “A Green Finance Facilities Ecosystem: A USD 3tn Opportunity for Africa”, organized by the African Development Bank (AfDB), as part of the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week 2022, held in Dubai, UAE, said the Ministry of International Cooperation in a statement.

The minister emphasized the need to strengthen multilateral cooperation to advance several areas within the green transformation, namely mitigation and adaptation projects, expertise and knowledge sharing in technology, and financing.

Al-Mashat pointed out that Egypt is working to advance its national efforts, as well as to enhance regional and international actions in addressing climate action, and in maintaining ambitious plans through an international framework for innovative climate financing.
Al-Mashat also referred to the need for international financial institutions to expand climate finance based on pillars related to inclusion and justice, ensuring that the global community, particularly the developing and emerging countries, can benefit from climate financing and green investments.

Moreover, the minister stressed the importance of the participation of all stakeholders, including women and youth, and the inclusion of the private sector in developing climate action plans and financing environmentally-friendly projects through innovative financing solutions, risk reduction tools, and blended financing.

She added that innovative financing tools have become critically important in light of the challenges facing the world, as they play a vital role in achieving sustainable and comprehensive development. The minister pointed out that increasing green investments, especially in developing and emerging countries, in addition to soft development financing from development banks will support the global community in achieving the climate goals.

Al-Mashat highlighted the successive measures taken by the Government of Egypt to promote green investments, pushing the transition towards a green economy, through decisions to increase green public investments from 15% in the current fiscal year to 30% in the next fiscal year, followed by a 50% increase in 2024/2025. In 2021, Egypt secured the first green financing from international and regional banks worth $1.5 billion, directed to finance environmentally friendly projects such as, water treatment and desalination plants, solid waste management, canal lining, and seawater desalination.

In 2021, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) provided $100 million in Egypt’s first private sector green bond issuance. Moreover, in 2020, Egypt was the first country in the Middle East and North Africa to issue $750 million worth of 5-year sovereign green bonds.


Al-Mashat added that the Government of Egypt, is working to launch a set of national initiatives to advance green finance and to put into practice the commitments of COP26, in light of its presidency this year, through stimulus packages to support a transition towards a green economy, and to provide financial incentives to the private sector’s contribution to green projects, alongside working to reduce harmful emissions and increase the country’s new and renewable energy.

The minister referred to Egypt’s experience in mapping the Official Development Assistant (ODA) to the Sustainable Development Goals which allowed for enhanced cooperation efforts between the country and its development partners, in support of the national agenda. This mapping also showed that the ongoing development cooperation portfolio includes development financing worth $2.85 billion to finance 28 projects in adaptation projects; energy efficiency, agriculture, wastewater management, and water desalination; and $7.83 billion to finance 46 projects in mitigation projects; renewable energy, sustainable cities, and sustainable transport.