By Hosseiny Hassan and Shaimaa Elise The Egyptian government is negotiating with the World Bank to receive a new loan of $300m to support health care in government hospitals. This is set to occur through the provision of medical equipment and the removal of deficient drugs from government hospitals. The Ministry of Health and various health departments across Egypt conducted a comprehensive survey of government hospitals to determine the medical equipment and drugs not available. This will then affect how the loan is spent. Senior World Bank Economist Ahmed Kouchouk said loan negotiations are ongoing to determine payments, and the bank will have the technical supervision of the project's implementation. Kouchouk noted that Egypt will receive the loan during May, adding that the loan repayment period will be between 25-30 years. The agreement is also set to include a five-year grace period, and an interest rate of 3.5% plus a variable margin. The World Bank recently signed a loan with the Egyptian Ministry of Social Solidarity worth $400m, to support social welfare and to finance the initial phase of the "Solidarity and Dignity" programme. In February, the Bank loaned $275m to the Egyptian government to support and provide comprehensive health care to all Egyptian families during the next five years. The selected families reside in the poorest 1,000 villages, 93% of them are based in Upper Egypt.
