The Ministries of International Cooperation, Local Development, Agriculture and Land Reclamation, and Social Solidarity discussed the action plan and proposed operational steps for expanding the United Nations World Food Programme’s (WFP) Projects to achieve agricultural and rural development; following the success of the first phase implemented in 63 villages across five governorates in Upper Egypt.

Last September, H.E Minister of International Cooperation Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat visited few of the project sites in the Luxor Governorate; which is when it was proposed to expand the intervention plans to other villages. Al-Mashat held a meeting in order to discuss the expansion plans with Major General Mahmoud Sharawi, Minister of Local Development; Al-Sayed Al-Quseir, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation; Nevine El-Kabbaj, Minister of Social Solidarity; and Menghestab Haile, Country Director and Representative of WFP Egypt. This meeting falls within the Ministry’s Economic Diplomacy doctrine calling for Multi-Stakeholder Platforms gathering multilateral and bilateral development partners and line ministries, to align future priorities following Egypt’s 2030 National Agenda and the global UN SDGs. During the meeting, Al-Mashat reviewed the successful partnership with the WFP through the country strategy from 2018 to 2023, which is based on several key pillars that include enhancing food security, developing agricultural and rural communities, and supporting the most vulnerable groups in rural communities; such as girls, women and rural entrepreneurs, and small farmers. The Minister of International Cooperation pointed out that the second phase of the projects implemented through the WFP in collaboration with the Government of Egypt complements the “Decent Life” Presidential Initiative. This initiative aims to develop and reform the country’s most vulnerable villages by supporting investment in human capital through enhancing livelihoods, diversifying sources of income via livestock and poultry production projects, loans, handicrafts, improving the efficiency of using water resources, supporting the ability of farmers to adapt to climate change, achieving economic and social empowerment of women and girls, and encouraging creativity and innovation through collaborative digital knowledge platforms. Al-Mashat added that these projects help in achieving a wide range of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) such as, SDG 1: No Poverty, SDG 2: Zero Hunger, SDG 4: Quality Education, SDG 5: Gender Equality, SGD 6: Clean Water and Sanitation, SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth, and SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities. The Minister discussed the proposed work plan for the next phase, explaining that a specialized committee will be formed to pinpoint the appropriate villages and centers for the development project expansion. This committee will include representatives from the relevant ministries and the WFP to discuss the precise details of the proposed plan and finalize its implementation framework. Al-Mashat specified that another Multi-Stakeholder Platform will be held, where the necessary development financing sources will be further discussed. H.E. Al-Mashat added that the WFP projects come in the context of the third pillar of Economic Diplomacy, which is the Global Partnerships Narrative that puts “People at the Core, Projects in Action and Purpose as the Driver”. She explained that the first phase of the project was a model for economic and social development as it brought together development partners, the government, the private sector and the civil society under one umbrella, working towards one goal; which is the development of rural and agricultural communities to achieve sustainable development. Major General Mahmoud Sharawi, Minister of Local Development praised the efforts made by WFP in terms of development projects across many of Egypt’s governorates, highlightingh the efforts put in the ongoing coordination for the villages’ development projects expansion. General Sharawi stressed the importance of the projects in coordination with WFP to support rural communities in Upper Egypt within the framework of the National Program for the Development of the Rural Areas which falls under the “Decent Life” Presidential initiative. This includes ensuring the availability of the important services to the citizens, particularly in infrastructure and sanitation, drinking water, and job opportunities for residents, especially for youth and women. General Sharawi added that this is happening alongside other development projects implemented by other ministries: canal lining, and modernizing irrigation systems and agricultural processes. The Minister of Local Development commented that it is necessary to set a criteria that can be used to select villages that will take part in the project, and to have a sufficient description of their needs through the updated data within the framework of the “Decent Life” Initiative and the Egyptian Rural Development Program. H.E. pointed out the readiness of the Local Development Fund to provide loans with low interest for residents in villages to establish Micro, Medium, and Small-sized Enterprises. Nevine El-Kabbaj, the Minister of Social Solidarity also applauded the strong partnership between WFP and Egypt in several projects under the social protection framework. The “1,000 days” project is an essential collaboration between the Ministry and WFP: the program focuses on supporting childre