To help create a consistent drumbeat around the 2030 agenda, sharing project stories has now become an urgent need to scale up impact and bring about new partnerships, new solutions and new avenues for sustainable development.
Egypt’s Ministry of International Cooperation (MOIC) and CNN International Commercial (CNNIC) are collaborating on a new global advertising campaign, Building Forward: Stories from Egypt, which highlights the country’s international partnerships for sustainable development. It illustrates Egypt’s collaboration with bilateral and multilateral development partners and international financial institutions that fosters multilateralism to push an inclusive, digital and green economy.
The films come under the Ministry’s Global Partnerships Narrative - the third core principle in economic diplomacy - which aims to showcase Egypt’s success stories in development through film and content storytelling to inspire action, foster engagement with global and local audiences and put Egypt’s story of development on the world stage.
In line with the directives of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi to bolster Egypt’s multilateral cooperation through country-led frameworks, the Ministry of International Cooperation has been keen on pushing the frontiers of collaboration through the three principles of economic diplomacy to effectively deliver the 2030 National Agenda, consistent with the UN SDGs. The principles include: multi-stakeholder platforms, ODA-SDG mapping, and the Global Partnerships Narrative.
The film highlights the journey of Egypt’s national women empowerment strategy, which continues to build on the successes and lessons learned of the past. It outlines Egypt’s visible steps towards inclusivity by encouraging women to succeed in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math to close the gender gap and build an innovation-based economy.
As global contexts have also pushed forward a nexus approach to development, the STEM project achieves the following interlinked SDGs: SDG 4 (quality education) and SDG 5 (gender equality).
The STEM schools project is currently being implemented in 11 governorates across the country, benefiting over 5,000 students in its first phase. One example is the story of Alaa Saber Sayed, who was a high school student in the “Science of Sports” section at Beni Suef's STEM school and was selected among 100 students worldwide for the ‘Rise for the World’ program in the United States.
Cathy Ibal, Senior Vice President, CNNIC, said, “Sustainability and creating a positive impact are key priorities for CNN and are important to our audience and our partners. We are delighted to be joining once again with Hon. Minister Rania Al-Mashat and her excellency’s team to highlight MOIC’s efforts towards the Sustainable Development Goals and the Ministry’s involvement in Egypt’s economic progression through this dynamic international campaign that will reach audiences in English and Arabic.”
Minister Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat expressed her enthusiasm for partnering with CNN, underscoring that “Egypt’s leadership is keen on fostering transparent and interactive engagement with all stakeholders to exchange experiences, build consensus, and ensure effective coordination. The Ministry’spartnership with CNN is an important opportunity to showcase Egypt's successful collaboration with development partners and international stakeholders through real-life examples and projects that have been fundamental in transforming peoples’ lives and stimulating social, economic and environmental advancement.”
She added, “We are engaging for impact towards our common future."
To promote gender equality and empower all women and girls, and mainstream gender equality across projects in various sectors, gender equality had emerged as a cross-cutting theme in 99 projects worth $6.7 billion.
The Ministry of International Cooperation’s ongoing development cooperation portfolio includes 372 projects worth $26.5 billion in a variety of sectors, prioritizing an inclusive, green and digital economy.