● 3 German grants to support the comprehensive technical education initiative, solid waste management, and enhancing risk management.
● A grant from the EIB to implement a sustainable green industries project.
The Ministry of International Cooperation announced the approval of the House of Representatives, in its session held yesterday, for non-refundable grants worth €80.5 million, from the Federal Republic of Germany and the European Investment Bank (EIB), to implement a number of development projects, in light of the economic relations between the Arab Republic of Egypt and multiple development partners.
The House of Representatives approved Presidential Resolution No. 612 of 2023 approving the financial cooperation agreement between the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, worth €80 million, to finance the National Solid Waste Management Program, financial support for the Comprehensive Technical Education Initiative, and risk management mechanisms.
Through this agreement, Germany, through the German Development Bank, provides non-refundable financial contributions worth €80 million, divided by €28 million to strengthen risk management mechanisms and credit guarantee mechanisms that are compatible with the financing needs of small and medium-sized companies, and €32 million for the comprehensive technical education initiative in Egypt. Through which 25 Egyptian centers of excellence will be established, which are specialized centers, applied technology centers, sectoral centers of excellence in the field of renewable energy, and technical schools.
Additionally, €20 million for the National Solid Waste Management Program at the Ministry of Environment, with the aim of restructuring the waste sector at the national level, and implementing an integrated solid waste management system in four targeted governorates: Kafr El-Sheikh, Gharbia, Qena, and Assiut.
The Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, explained that Egyptian-German relations at the level of development cooperation are witnessing remarkable development, which enhances development efforts in Egypt in various fields with the strong support of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, adding that the Ministry of International Cooperation is working to support these efforts and continuous coordination to meet the requirements of various national bodies and enhance the development vision in the country, especially in the areas of transition to a green economy, support efforts to develop education, technical education, and other fields.
On the other hand, the House of Representatives approved Presidential Resolution No. 613 of 2023 approving the consultative cooperation agreement to support the selection of investment plans for the sustainable green industry project with a value of €500 thousand as a grant from the EIB.
Through the grant that benefits the Ministry of Environment and the Environmental Affairs Agency, the Sustainable Green Industries Project provides public and private companies with soft loans and grants as an incentive to implement green investments in the areas of eliminating industrial pollution, reducing carbon emissions in the industrial sector through the use of renewable energy, as well as developing sustainable industry practices by increasing energy efficiency and resource use, and digitizing environmental procedures.
In this regard, Al-Mashat expressed her appreciation to the close relations with the EIB and its role in providing soft development financing to the government and private sectors in Egypt, explaining that after transforming the bank’s office in Egypt into a regional center serving the countries of the region, the joint relations will witness a remarkable development in the future on the level of enhancing cooperation between Egypt and other countries, and supporting South-South cooperation, especially since Egypt is the largest country of operations for the EIB outside the European Union countries.
The development cooperation portfolio between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Federal Republic of Germany amounts to approximately €1.6 billion, through which 30 projects were financed in the form of loans, technical support grants, and financial contributions.
Many sectors benefited from this portfolio, including energy efficiency, renewable energy, sanitation, and irrigation, solid waste management, migration, labor market, private sector innovation, technical education, vocational training, urban development, administrative reform, women, youth and social development.
While the current development portfolio with the EIB records approximately €3.5 billion, it includes many financing tools through soft loans, grants, technical support, and various development grants between the European Union and the Bank, with a total of 16 projects to contribute to supporting development projects in various sectors, including drinking water and sanitation, transportation, small and medium enterprises, air navigation, the environment, and energy of all kinds.