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  • Tuesday, 05 July 2022

Egypt’s Climate Finance Ambitions Heighten with SCATEC, the Institute of International Finance and European Investment Bank in run-up to COP27

Engaging with global energy partners to expand Egypt’s renewable energy potential, the Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat held an important meeting with Terje Pilskog, CEO of Scatec, Hilde Klemetsdal, Norway's Ambassador to Egypt and Libya, and Mohamed Amer, General Manager of Scatec in the Middle East and Northwest Africa. 

The Minister noted that large-scale renewable energy projects have provided tangible economic benefits for Egyptian citizens, illustrating how green projects can achieve the social-economic-environment sustainability model and adopt a human-centered outlook on the green transition. Green jobs related to agriculture, wastewater management, manufacturing, scientific research, as well as energy have provided significant opportunities for the population, particularly young workers.

For his part, Terje Pilskog, CEO of Scatec, praised the impressive implementation of the Benban solar power plant project, which provided 20,000 jobs during the four-year construction period, and also provided 6,000 fixed jobs through private sector companies. 

Belskog added that the pipeline of large-scale renewable infrastructure projects is supported by government policies, with the example of green bonds, which has given private investors more confidence to invest in Egypt’s clean energy transition. 

Technical meetings will be held between the Ministry of International Cooperation and Scatec to highlight success stories in preparation for the second edition of the Egypt-International Cooperation Forum, as well as during Egypt’s presidency of the COP27 Climate Change Conference.

In the same vein, the Minister held a virtual meeting with Sonja Gibbs, Managing Director and Head of Sustainable Finance at the Institute of International Finance, in the presence of Wolfgang Engel, General Manager and Chief Representative at the Institute of International Finance, to explore opportunities for cooperation in light of COP27 and the need of the hour to advance innovative financing mechanisms, particularly in mitigation and adaptation. 

To extend the strategic partnership between the government and the European Investment Bank in promoting a climate-resilient and private sector-led economy, Gelsomina Vigliotti, Vice President of the European Investment Bank, will visit Egypt for four days this week.

This is the first high-level visit of Vigliotti to Egypt since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

During her visit, Vigliotti is set to meet with a number of ministers and officials from the government and the private sector to promote climate, technical and economic cooperation in energy and food security, and kick off preparations for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27). 

Egypt’s Pillars to Rebuild the Economy and Become a Global Trade Hub to Overcome Economic Shocks

As the world is currently facing a crisis on top of a crisis, with the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine conflict still affecting many livelihoods around the world, international cooperation provides an avenue for knowledge exchange on countries’ successful lessons learned to overcome economic shocks. 

The Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, participated in various panels and meetings to present the steps the Government of Egypt has taken to forge its own independent path for a green and resilient recovery, and to provide lessons learned for other emerging economies that are looking for finding shortcuts to sustainable development. 

The Minister held a meeting with the Human Rights Committee at the House of Representatives, headed by Tareq Radwan, Chairman Committee for Human Rights, in the presence of Mohamed Abdel Aziz, Deputy Chairperson, and members of the Human Rights Committee.

The Minister noted that one of the main pillars for Egypt’s recovery plan is to prioritize the needs of the regular Egyptian individual, and to build the capacity and skills of the local population in order to ensure that the economy is supported by the contribution of the majority of its population, including women, youth, the academic and science community, civil society and the private sector. 

The Minister added that there are currently 149 projects that finance investment in human capital, worth a total of $5.5 billion, for education and scientific research ($1.8 billion), entrepreneurship and small enterprises ($1.2 billion), health ($9.7 million), agriculture ($625 million) and social protection ($962 million).

Secondly, another main pillar for Egypt’s recovery is its robust infrastructure ecosystem, which has provided room for private sector companies to work closely with the government and other stakeholders throughout the entire project cycle. The Minister noted that 111 infrastructure projects are currently being implemented, which includes transportation, housing, energy, irrigation, and urban development, worth a total of $18.5 billion development financing.

Thirdly, Egypt focuses on restoring nature in the economy and promoting green equilibrium, believing in the utmost potential of nature-based solutions to advance the economy. During her participation at the Climate Finance Summit, which took place in the margins of the G7 meeting at the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost in Munich (Germany), the Minister highlighted that the Ministry of International Cooperation is supporting Egypt's vision of becoming a global trade hub through strengthening transportation and port infrastructure, developing new railway networks, and integrating Egypt into a global transportation network that enhances the movement of citizens and investment.