Egypt's Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat delivered the closing speech at the 2023 edition of the EIB MED Conference, which was jointly organised by the Spanish Presidency of the European Union and the Union for the Mediterranean. The conference was held under the theme of "Connectivity in the Mediterranean: Together for a Better Future." This included the participation of Gelsomina Vigliotti, Vice President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Hassan Abdallah, Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt, Ambassador Nasser Kamel, Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean, and other government representatives, leaders of the EIB, the private sector, international financing institutions, and relevant stakeholders. In her speech, Minister Al-Mashat highlighted Egypt's progress in infrastructure development. She noted that the country has seen significant growth in the infrastructure sector in recent years, driven by strong political will and effective partnerships between the government and private sectors. She also spoke about the government's efforts to develop 14 smart cities and to expand the use of green buildings, which are designed to increase energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact. Minister Al-Mashat also discussed Egypt's cooperation with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to support sustainable infrastructure and clean energy transition. She noted that Egypt is the largest country of operations for the EIB in the region and that the bank has the second-largest ongoing development cooperation portfolio with Egypt, with a total of €3.5bn. The minister explained that in light of the future cooperation strategy with the EIB, it is scheduled to provide about €4bn for projects of the NWFE projects and others in Egypt. She said that Egypt and the EIB have signed a partnership agreement to support the NWFE program, which is a national platform for green projects that aim to accelerate the pace of green transformation and implement the climate action agenda. Al-Mashat also spoke about the EIB's efforts to enhance private sector participation in development. She noted that half of the EIB's portfolio in Egypt since 1979 has been allocated to the private sector and that in 2022, the bank provided a total amount of approximately €662m to banks and equity funds. She also mentioned that the EIB recently signed a $15m agreement with the Bank of Alexandria to finance small and medium-sized projects in the areas of energy efficiency and renewable energy. Vigliotti also spoke at the conference. She applauded the fruitful cooperation between the government of Egypt and the EIB, and she referred to the NWFE program as a practical example of the interdependence between mitigation and adaptation projects in the Mediterranean region.
