The Minister of International Cooperation H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat held bilateral meetings with the Russian Minister of Economic Development, on the sidelines of the 24th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). The SPIEF, held in St. Petersburg, Russia, from June 2 to June 5 has been a leading global platform for the business community to discuss economic challenges faced by emerging markets, and other countries for the last 24 years. Under the theme “A Collective Reckoning of the New Global Economic Reality”, this year’s forum brings together government representatives, business leaders, and the creative community to address the economic challenges being faced by the world. During the sidelines of the forum, Al-Mashat met with Reshetnikov to discuss strengthening bilateral relations between Egypt and Russia on several fronts, including trade and investment. In trade, Egypt is Russia’s top partner in Africa holding 83% of its African trade volume and 33% of its overall trade volume with Arab countries. There are also 472 Russian companies investing in Egypt, making up for $1 billion of issued share capital. Egypt and Russia share a portfolio of bilateral cooperation that includes tourism, culture, electricity, energy and petroleum; including various projects such as the Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant project. In the transportation sector, Russia supported Egypt by supplying and manufacturing over a thousand railway vehicles. The two countries also signed a 50-year agreement that establishes a Russian Industrial Zone in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, attracting over $7 billion of investment and creating 35,000 jobs. Both Ministers looked into possible areas for future cooperation in the energy, infrastructure, railways, mining, and oil and gas sectors. They also explored the opportunity of Russian participation in the National Project of Grain Silos that aims to establish 50 silos for grain storage with the capacity of 1.2 million tons across 17 governorates in Egypt. Reshetnikov and Al-Mashat also discussed the Free Trade Agreement between Egypt and the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), which can serve to present Egypt as a link between the EAEU and the African Union (AU). The first round of negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement was between Egypt and Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia, in January 2019 in Cairo. The second round was held in Russia in April 2019, and the third round was held in October 2019 in Cairo, while a fourth round is expected to be held in the coming period. During the bilateral talks, Al-Mashat expressed that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Egypt’s development efforts were not derailed but rather expedited, as the country was singled out and celebrated for its sound policy choices and partnerships that supported economic growth. The Minister said that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reported that the Egyptian economy is one of the fastest growing economies in the world with a positive GDP growth rate of 3.6% in 2020. Pushing through a challenging 2021, Egypt is prevailing economically with a growth rate of 2.5% and is expected to grow by 5.7% in 2022, according to the IMF’s 2021 report on “World Economic Outlook: Managing Divergent Recoveries”. Al-Mashat added that Egypt has embarked on several national mega projects to bolster its economic growth such as the development Suez Canal Economic Zone; the establishment of new cities including the New Administrative Capital, the New Ismailia City, and the New Alamein City; the expansion of sustainable energy projects, including a major renewable energy flagship project, the Benban Solar Power complex; and the development of new roads and a connected transportation infrastructure. One of the key reasons that the Government of Egypt was able to cushion the socioeconomic and health impacts of the pandemic, and achieve progress is the homegrown economic reform program (2016 to 2019), implemented in cooperation with the IMF. The economic reform has positively impacted, and pushed for monetary, fiscal, and structural reforms aiming to achieve macroeconomic stability and sustainable growth. The second phase of this reform program is centered around technology-intensive industries, agriculture, and information and communications technology. “Egypt is focused on catalyzing its technological advancements by integrating transformative restructure plans in the sector of clean energy pushing towards a sustainable recovery, as well as implementing a well-rounded digital transformation across all sectors, with a targeted focus on industry and investments,” said Al-Mashat. The Minister added that this is being done via strategic partnerships with several International Financial Institutions (IFIs), Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), development partners, the Egyptian private sector, and the civil society. As a way to ensure inclusive and impactful development, the Ministry of International Cooperation launched its three principles of Economic Diplomacy in April 2020; holding Multi-Stakeholder Platforms to bring all relevant entities onto the same decision making table; developing the first of its kind Official Development Assistance mapping to the UN SDG to track progress in development projects aligned with the sustainability goals; and communicating through a consistent Global Partnerships Narrative that puts “People at the Core”, “Projects in Action”, and “Purpose as the Driver”.