The World Bank is working on various programmes that would increase the productivity, President David Malpass said on Thursday. "In Egypt, we're working on various country programmes that would increase the productivity. Egypt faces challenges in the agriculture sector, in the logistics sector, in the tourism sector, in electricity, that they're making progress on, that we're working with them on, and I think there can be more focused effort that will extend to health care, as well," Malpass explained. Malpass made his remarks during the virtual press briefing he held on Wednesday from Washingotn DC, on the sidelines of the annual meeting between the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which kicked off last Monday. The International Bank For Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), one of the World Bank's financing arms, has provided $400 million to Egypt's Universal Health Insurance system, out of the project's total cost of $2.4 billion, he noted. On climate action, Malpass said that the bank has dedicated 35 percent of the total global commitments for actions that tackle climate change and enhance the green transformation. The World Bank Group is preparing for a new Country Partnership Framework 2021–2025 that focuses on job creation and inclusion as the core themes when addressing government priorities and new challenges. Its outlook on Egypt's economy, announced on the sidelines of the ongoing annual meetings event, said the slow vaccination rate, the emergence of the Delta-variant and the resurgence of COVID-19 cases could threaten the country's recovery. However, under the World Bank's baseline scenario that assumes that the pandemic continues to ease, and lockdown measures are not reinstated, Egypt's growth is projected to grow from 3.3 percent in the 2020/2021 financial year to 5 percent in the 2021/2022 year thanks to favourable base effects and global growth.
