H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, held a bilateral meeting with Mr. Jürgen Schulz, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Cairo, to discuss strengthening the future of development cooperation relations between the two countries.
At the beginning of the meeting, H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat congratulated the German Ambassador on the formation of the new German government headed by Chancellor Friedrich Merz, expressing sincere wishes for success in leading the country towards further progress and prosperity, emphasizing that this new phase of political leadership represents an opportunity to deepen and strengthen the well-established bilateral relations between Egypt and Germany, which have long been characterized by fruitful cooperation in various economic and developmental fields.
Al-Mashat highlighted the importance of the strategic partnership between the two countries, which is based on shared values and keenness to achieving the interests of the peoples, expressing her expectation that the next phase would witness more cooperation on priority issues, on top of which is green transformation, youth empowerment, promoting innovation, and inclusive economic development.
H.E. affirmed that the Federal Republic of Germany is one of the most prominent international development partners of the Arab Republic of Egypt, as the two countries have decades of distinguished bilateral cooperation relations based on mutual respect and a shared vision to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and enhance inclusive and sustainable economic growth.
H.E Dr. Rania Al-Mashat added that many projects have been implemented with the German side through various financing mechanisms, including debt swap agreements, concessional financing, direct financial contributions, as well as technical support and technical cooperation grants, with the aims of supporting the Egyptian state's priorities in a number of vital sectors that contribute to strengthening sustainable development efforts and achieving Egypt’s Vision 2030, particularly in the sectors of renewable energy, climate change, drinking water and sanitation projects, irrigation, migration, and solid waste management, in addition to supporting the competitiveness of the private sector and enabling it to play a greater role in the national economy.
In this context, Al-Mashat highlighted the Egyptian-German economic relations and the positive outcomes that have been achieved, pointing to the financial cooperation agreement valued at €118 million, divided into €54 million in concessional financing and €64 million in financial contributions, to support development projects in both the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy and the Ministry of Education and Technical Education, in addition to a new agreement within the debt swap program to support renewable energy, with a total value of €21 million.
During the meeting, the two sides discussed several new topics, including preparations for the 2025 Egyptian-German governmental negotiations, in addition to the proposal for the new tranche of the Egyptian-German debt swap program, which is scheduled to be activated in December 2025.
At the conclusion of the meeting, the Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation confirmed that the development cooperation relations with the German side embody a strategic partnership based on mutual trust, common understanding, and a unified vision towards a more sustainable future. This partnership remains a model to be emulated in cooperation between the North and South countries, which contributes to supporting national development priorities and enhancing the resilience of the Egyptian economy in the face of challenges.
It is worth noting that the value of the bilateral economic cooperation portfolio between the Arab Republic of Egypt and Germany has reached approximately €1.6 billion, directed to implement a number of development projects in strategic sectors that are considered a high priority at the national level.