Minister of International Cooperation Naglaa Al-Ahwany signed Sunday a €7.15m agreement with the French Ambassador to Egypt Andre Baran to fund replacing navigation systems at Taba International Airport. The signing of the agreement was attended by Minister of Civil Aviation Hossam Kamal and Chairman of the Egyptian Holding Company for Airports and Air Navigation Ehab Azmy. The €7.15m is a loan from the French treasury, and is scheduled to be repaid in 20 years, with a six year grace period and 0.17% interest. France has, since 1976, contributed to funding several civil aviation projects, with a total value of Fr1.37bn, through 26 agreements. Egypt has obtained Fr27.9bn in aid from France between 1974 and 2008, in addition to Fr755.5m through 40 agreements. The aid was used to support the economic development and fund projects in the fields of transportation, industry, electricity, civil aviation, housing, health, agriculture and education. The value of the French investments in Egypt amounts to $6.7bn, through around 650 French companies operating in the Egyptian market, according to the ministry. The trade volume between both countries amounted to $3.1bn in 2013.
