Italy is granting a credit line worth € 45 million to Egyptian and Italian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have common projects in the industry, food and services sectors. This scheme aims to support the Egyptian private sector, strengthen the role of SMEs in the creation of new jobs and support the creation of businesses in deprived areas. According to the Egyptian Ministry of International Cooperation, Italy and Egypt will sign an agreement within the upcoming period regarding the re-activation of loan procedures and conditions of a new Italian credit line worth € 45 million for Egypt's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The Egyptian ministry referred that Italy has managed with the National Bank of Egypt (NBE) and the Social Fund for Development (SFD) to provide two credit lines totalling €10 million and €12.5 million, respectively. During the current week, Egyptian Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Ziad Baha El-Din had received the Secretary General of the Italian Foreign Ministry Michele Valensise in the presence of the Italian ambassador to Cairo. The meeting discussed the means of bilateral cooperation between the two countries. From his part, Valensise asserted Italy's support for the technical and economic cooperation with Egypt, hailing the projects and programmes that are included in the Italian-Egyptian development cooperation portfolio. The Italian-Egyptian development cooperation portfolio includes multiple financing mechanisms such as the Dept-Swap programme and the credit lines to provide technical and financial support to the SMEs.
