The World Bank Group's (WBG) interim President, Kristalina Georgieva, praised Egypt's efforts in terms of achieving governance, combating corruption, and eliminating terrorism, a Tuesday statement of the Investment and International Cooperation Ministry (MIIC) said. A high-level Egyptian delegation, headed by Ahmed Saad Khalil, chairperson of the Egyptian Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Combating Unit, visited Washington, DC to hold meetings with the WBG, the statement added. The delegation also included Investment Minister Sahar Nasr, Attorney General Nabil Sadek, and Hisham Badawi, chairperson of the Central Auditing Organization (CAO), the statement noted. The Egyptian economic reform programme contributed to boosting the country's economic growth, injecting new investments, Georgieva mentioned, affirming the WBG's support to Egypt in fighting corruption and the application of decent governance, which are the main pillars of development. The Egyptian delegation stressed that the state bodies prioritise the implementation of the President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi's directives to prevent corruption before it occurs, combat money laundering, and eliminate terrorism which would strengthen the state institutions, improve and maximise its roles, in the light of political, economic and social reform witnessed by country, which requires redoubling efforts and hard work in accordance with the highest levels of efficiency and integrity. Providing high-quality public services and the creation of decent conditions for businesses are fundamental to offering job opportunities and achieving prosperity for all, Georgieva added, affirming the bank's keenness to improve relations with Egypt in various fields, especially in the area of governance, anti-corruption, money laundering, small and medium-sized enterprises, entrepreneurship, and education. For his part, Khalil pointed out that the availability of information in the field of combating crimes of money laundering and related issues, including financing of terrorism by using the modern technological platforms. Sadek noted that the general prosecution has appointed a team of highly experienced investigators in the money laundering issues, calling for boosting the international cooperation in the field of anti-terrorism through a newly established international and regional framework. Badawi pointed out that role of the CAO is vital through uncovering many incidents of corruption, noting that the organisation is launching continuous training sessions for those carrying out the supervision tasks with the aim of sharing ideas and experiences. Nasr also exposed the Egyptian efforts in terms of disputes' settlement in coordination with the Justice Ministry. The Egyptian delegation will also meet with US senior officials who are specialised in anti-terrorism, money laundering, and financing of terrorism.
