The Saudi Grant Committee approved, on Sunday, EGP 200m in financing for five new projects in Egypt, according to Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat. The funding comes as part of a wider Saudi grant of $200m that has been given to Egypt with which to achieve sustainable development in the country. Minister Al-Mashat said that three of the five new projects have Agricultural Bank of Egypt (ABE) backing, while the other two projects are in the health care sector and value chain support. The minister said that the ABE will receive EGP 100m grant to finance its projects in coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture. The partnership comes as part of interest in food security and supporting small farmers, and includes: a project to develop rural villages; a project for financing the value chain programme; and a programme financing dairy product manufacturing. Minister Al-Mashat added that Contact Leasing will obtain a total of EGP 50m to support the healthcare sector. E-Finance will receive another EGP 50m to support value chains and provide logistical support to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). "The financed projects will be implemented across Egypt, with a focus on Upper Egypt governorates, and other regions outside of Cairo and Alexandria," she declared. The minister pointed out that Saudi Arabia has financed a total of 2,176 projects so far in 27 governorates through a $200m grant which has contributed to creating about 12,000 jobs.
