To improve people’s livelihoods through a well-coordinated approach, the Ministry of International Cooperation is strengthening its collaboration with development partners and local development actors, including ministries and the private sector, to address the water, energy and food security nexus.
The Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, held a meeting with Yamanaka Shinichi, Senior Vice President of Japan International Cooperation Agency, to explore climate cooperation in light of Egypt’s hosting of COP27, particularly during the activities of ‘Finance Day’ which will be held at the forum.
The Minister spoke about the NWFE Program, which aims to finance projects that address the water, food and energy nexus, in line with both the National Strategy for Climate Change 2050 and Egypt’s 2030 Vision. This comes within the Multi-Stakeholder Platform (MSP) with the Development Partners Groups (DPG), held in partnership between the Ministry of International Cooperation and the United Nations office in Egypt, under the title “Climate Change: Strengthening Partnerships & Strategic Dialogue on Equitable & Sustainable Climate Finance”.
During the meeting, the Minister also discussed preparations for holding a policy dialogue between the Ministry of International Cooperation and the Japanese delegation next August, with the participation of the Ambassador of Japan and JICA‘s Director-General for Europe and the Middle East to strengthen Egyptian-Japanese economic, climate and technical cooperation.
In the same vein, the Minister announced this week that the Board of Directors of the African Development Bank approved development financing for Egypt worth 271 million dollars to support agricultural productivity and sustainability, as well as combat food security risks. This comes against the backdrop of the reforms undertaken by the government to promote self-sufficiency in food production and agricultural transformation.
This year, the Ministry of International Cooperation launched national consultations with the African Development Bank to prepare the new country cooperation strategy for 2022/2026, which witnessed the participation of representatives of more than 17 ministries and government agencies, including the ministries of housing, transport, local development, agriculture, water and irrigation, tourism, communications, higher education and the General Authority for the Economic Zone of the Suez Canal.