The Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat met with Ambassador Ib Petersen, the Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), to discuss areas of bilateral cooperation, and the fund's role in supporting Egypt's Vision 2030. Minister Al-Mashat welcomed Petersen, stressing the vital role played by the United Nations and its affiliated agencies and programmes in supporting Egypt's priorities to achieve sustainable development, through the strategic framework of the 2018-2022 partnership between Egypt and the United Nations. The Minister also applauded the UN agencies' efforts in supporting the Government of Egypt's response plan to COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, especially the role played by the UNFPA as a strategic partner in implementing national policies, such as the National Population Strategy 2015/2030, and the implementation of the National Strategy to combat Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) (2014-2018). This is in addition to its role in supporting the recently launched National Youth Strategy 2021-2026, which is implemented by the Ministry of Youth and Sports along with other line ministries. Minister Al-Mashat stressed on Egypt's commitment in investing in human capital towards supporting development efforts, noting that Egypt has taken further steps towards the development of the Egyptian family, and women empowerment. The Minister pointed out that women are at the forefront of the national development plans and the government's reform agenda, which is reflected on the Egyptian family, noting that Egypt was the first country to issue women-specific responses during the COVID-19 pandemic, through a policy paper responding to the needs of women during the pandemic and encompassing 21 measures. The World Bank's Women, Business and the Law 2021 report applauded Egypt's positive steps towards protecting women's health. Minister Al-Mashat and Elena Panova, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Egypt, co-chaired in May, the annual meeting of the Steering Committee for the Partnership Development Framework (UNPDF) between Egypt and the United Nations for 2018-2022. They reviewed during the meeting the most important achievements and implemented development projects, and discussed new areas of cooperation for the partnership framework in 2023-2027; which supports Egypt's development vision and is also in line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. Al-Mashat added that the Ministry of International Cooperation is working towards developing relations with multilateral and bilateral development partners through its 3 principles of Economic Diplomacy; Multi Stakeholders Platform, ODA SDG Mapping, and the Global Partnerships Narrative that puts "People at Core", "Projects in Action," and "Purpose as the Driver". For his part, Ambassador Ib Petersen applauded the Ministry of International Cooperation's role in enhancing joint cooperation with the United Nations, its agencies and programs. He expressed his aspiration to expand partnerships between the Government of Egypt and the UNFPA. Established in 1969, the UNFPA promotes policies that support the health of women and youth between the ages of 10-24 years old and works on investing in the youth, to tap on their potential and catalyze their ability to contribute to economic and social development.
