Al-Mashat Discusses New Prospects of Development Cooperation with Japanese Ambassador

H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation, met with Mr. Masaki Noke, Japanese Ambassador to Egypt, to discuss joint Egyptian-Japanese economic relations and future development cooperation projects. This comes as part of the ongoing meetings convened by the Minister of International Cooperation with multilateral and bilateral development partners; tackling the progress of the ongoing partnerships to implement Egypt’s development vision. The perennially evolving Egyptian-Japanese relations, which extend back to the fifties, have been highlighted during the meeting, as Japan supports Egypt’s development vision and its quest to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through concessional development financing agreements in many sectors, including transportation and tourism and antiquities. The meeting discussed future partnership pending approval in the course of the current year, as Japan seeks to contribute to Egypt’s strategy targeting the development of the transport sector, particularly metro lines, in addition to the comprehensive health insurance project that shall boost the health care system for citizens. The meeting also discussed the recent development cooperation agreements, namely the agreement to increase the value of a grant provided by the Japanese government to YEN 2.1 billion, equivalent to $19 million, to establish an outpatient clinic building of the Abu Al- Rish Japanese Hospital. The Japanese government further provided development financing worth $9 million in support of Egypt's strategy to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, which entails the provision of medical equipment to Egypt’s chest hospitals, as well as the signing of an energy support policy agreement worth $236 million. This comes in light of the cooperation portfolio between Egypt and Japan, which started in 1954 and involves many target sectors. The current portfolio of economic cooperation between the two countries amounts to about $2.8 billion dedicated for the implementation of 14 projects.