● Egypt’s membership in the New Development Bank (NDB) and hosting the annual meetings of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) unlocks new horizons for multilateral cooperation relations.
● Holding an Egyptian-Japanese policy dialogue and signing a number of agreements and memorandums of understanding with China and South Korea.
● Continuous efforts to strengthen bilateral relations with India and Singapore and preparations for convening the joint committee with Vietnam.
The Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, visited Hong Kong, to participate in the 8th Belt and Road Summit, which coincides with the 10th anniversary of the launch of the initiative by Chinese President Xi Jinping, and in preparation for the Belt and Road Summit to be held in Beijing next month with the participation of world leaders.
Based on the Government of Egypt’s keenness to strengthen economic relations with multilateral and bilateral development partners in the continent of Asia and diversify joint relations to advance Egypt’s 2030 development vision and support green transformation and climate action efforts, the Ministry of International Cooperation, based on its role in accordance with Presidential Decree No. 303 of 2004, has undertaken many efforts during the current year to consolidate relations with Asian countries, including Japan, China, South Korea, Singapore, and India, in addition to multilateral international financing institutions such as the New Development Bank (NDB) and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
The following report discusses the most prominent of these efforts:
Cooperation Relations with International Multilateral Institutions:
● Joining the NDB:-
It was officially announced that Egypt would join the NDB of the BRICS group during the current year, and in her capacity as Deputy Governor of Egypt in the bank, Al-Mashat participated in the 8th session of the bank’s annual meetings held in Shanghai, China, where she confirmed Egypt’s membership in the NDB, along with the major emerging economies that are members of the BRICS group, enhances South-South cooperation efforts, and supports the efforts undertaken by the government to transfer expertise and development experiences in the field of international cooperation to the countries of the South, in a way that stimulates development efforts at the global level.
In the same context, Al-Mashat met with the President of the NDB, Dilma Rousseff, and held discussion sessions with the Vice-Presidents of the Bank, where Egypt’s efforts in enhancing multilateral cooperation were reviewed, and the vision of development cooperation between the two sides in the coming period was discussed, including Egypt's membership in the NDB will advance relations with the BRICS Bank, thus enhancing multilateral cooperation efforts similar to the close relations between Egypt, the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and other institutions.
● Annual meetings of the AIIB:-
Within the framework of preparations for the annual meetings of the AIIB in Sharm El-Sheikh this September, and the close relations between the government and the bank, Al-Mashat held a number of meetings with the bank’s officials and leaders, where she met AIIB President, Jin Liqun in Qatar as part of the activities of the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, at the beginning of this year.
H.E. also visited the bank’s headquarters as part of her visit to China last July, and also met with the vice-presidents of the bank during their participation in the annual meetings of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Sharm El-Sheikh.
The meetings witnessed discussion of the development cooperation portfolio and joint efforts to enhance the private sector’s participation in development, and discussions on developing a future strategy for development cooperation, based on the existing relations since 2016, as Egypt is the first non-Asian country for operations, raising the size of the development cooperation portfolio to about $1.3 billion. Among which $210 million is in financing for 11 companies from the private sector in the field of renewable energy to implement the Benban Solar Energy Park, and $150 million line of credit to the National Bank of Egypt (NBE) to re-lend to small and medium enterprises, in addition to $660 million in soft development financing for the government sector.
The bank participated alongside the World Bank in financing development policies and supporting the budget in Egypt, and the coming period is scheduled to witness more joint cooperation in light of the country’s development priorities and its efforts to promote development and climate action and stimulate innovative financing mechanisms.
Bilateral cooperation
● Egyptian-Japanese relations:-
The economic relations and strategic partnership between Egypt and Japan are witnessing great development, especially during the current year, coinciding with the visit of the Prime Minister of Japan to Egypt and his meeting with the President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of the Arabic Republic of Egypt, which witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding for the strategic partnership between the Ministry of International Cooperation and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC). It was also agreed to raise bilateral relations to the level of a strategic partnership in order to strengthen economic relations between the two countries and benefit from the promising potential of the two countries.
This year also witnessed the holding of the Joint Policy Dialogue, organized by the Ministry of International Cooperation and the Japanese Embassy in Cairo with the participation of relevant entities from both sides, which constitutes a prominent importance as a platform for strategic dialogue between the two governments and a national mechanism to enhance bilateral cooperation in a manner consistent with the priorities of the Government of Egypt, with the participation of relevant parties from the two sides, and setting joint cooperation priorities for the next five years.
● Egyptian-Chinese relations:-
Egypt and China are linked by historical relations that are a model of South-South cooperation, and have witnessed successive developments since 2014 with the support of the leaders of the two countries, when the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement was signed.
During her visit to Beijing, Al-Mashat participated in the 1st edition of the Forum on Global Action for Shared Development, a joint memorandum of understanding was signed on the Global Development Initiative (GDI), which includes a clause about the two sides establishing a mechanism for consultation at the departments level are working on formulating a strategy for development cooperation for a period of 3 or 5 years, which includes priority areas and projects.
This is the first time that work has been done to launch an integrated strategy for cooperation between the two countries. This is in addition to focusing on the areas of health care, climate change, green development, and the digital economy, as well as discussing other projects that are consistent with the areas of the GDI.
In another context, letters were signed to establish a vocational training center in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, letters were exchanged to supply 4 sets of mobile security vehicle systems equipment for the Ministry of Transport, and letters were exchanged to prepare a feasibility study for the biosafety laboratory project. The Minister of International Cooperation held extensive discussions during the visit with the Export-Import Bank of China and the Chinese Agency for International Development Cooperation.
● Joint relations with South Korea:-
During the past year, South Korea announced the selection of Egypt as a strategic partner in the field of development cooperation for the next five years, as a reflection of the mutual visits by the leaders of the two countries since 2016. This strengthens joint relations and builds on existing cooperation in various fields, including higher education, vocational training, information technology, women's empowerment, and sustainable infrastructure.
This development in joint relations was confirmed during the current year, as the Ministry of International Cooperation signed several joint cooperation agreements, including the project to localize the subway car industry in Egypt (manufacturing and supplying 40 train units), as well as enhancing technical support for the process of establishing the Egyptian Authority for Intellectual Property. The Minister of International Cooperation also met with officials of the Export-Import Bank of Korea last May to discuss developing a future strategy for cooperation.
● Egyptian-Indian relations:-
The year 2023 witnessed a qualitative shift in the joint and historical relations between Egypt and India, against the backdrop of the visit of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, to India last January, the visit of Prime Minister of India, H.E. Narendra Modi, to Egypt in June, and the agreement to raise the level of relations between the two countries, which opens up prospects for joint cooperation. Based on these developments, the Council of Ministers decided to form the Ministerial Committee, “Indian Unity”, with the Ministry of International Cooperation being the rapporteur of unity to coordinate between national bodies to set priorities and areas of cooperation with the Indian side.
Developments in joint relations open the way to enhance economic and development cooperation, increase training programs and build capabilities and cadres, maximize the benefit from EXIM Bank of India, and enhance tripartite cooperation between Egypt, India and African countries.
● Joint relations with Singapore:-
In light of strengthening joint relations between Egypt and Singapore, and the steps taken by the Ministry of International Cooperation since March 2022, in accordance with the mandate of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, the requirements for strengthening joint relations between the two countries were discussed through coordination with the parties concerned, to advance cooperation in three main areas: trade facilitation, digitization of ports and smart ports, and capacity building in the maritime transport sector.
● Egyptian relations with Vietnam
During the visit of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Vietnam to Egypt, H.E. Tran Luu Quang, last July, coinciding with the sixtieth anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the Minister of International Cooperation held a bilateral discussion session on strengthening joint cooperation efforts between the two countries and the preparations for the joint committee between Egypt and Vietnam, scheduled to be held this year.