The Minister met with Jozef Sikela, European Commissioner for International Partnerships, to discuss the ongoing advancements in the Egyptian-European strategic partnership. Their talks specifically focused on a €4 billion macroeconomic assistance and budget support mechanism and a €1.8 billion investment guarantee mechanism, both activated this year to bolster investments and expand guarantees from international institutions.
In a separate meeting, Al-Mashat underscored the critical
importance of the Financing for Development conference to Carlos Cuerpo,
Spain's Economy Minister. She described the event as a "pivotal
moment" for the global community to uphold its commitments to the Sustainable
Development Goals, particularly given recent worldwide crises that have
hindered the capacity of developing and emerging nations to meet their
development needs.
Dr. Al-Mashat highlighted the importance of the Seville
Action Platform, designed to revolutionize development finance and climate
action. The platform aims to empower nations to spearhead their own financing
strategies, synchronize national plans with practical funding, broaden
integrated national financing frameworks, and introduce a global guide to
direct international support based on each country's priorities.
She clarified that with many countries facing development
slowdowns due to limited fiscal space, implementing the conference's
recommendations is crucial for these nations to regain momentum and overcome
challenges.
In separate discussions, the Minister met with Axel van
Trotsenburg, World Bank Managing Director of Development Policy and
Partnerships, and Hiroshi Matano, Executive Vice President of the Multilateral
Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). Their talks focused on relations with the
World Bank Group and its affiliates, particularly in private sector financing
and expanding investment guarantees to spur both local and foreign investments.
She highlighted a ministry report showing over $15.6 billion in concessional
financing to the private sector since 2020.
She also held talks with Odile Renaud-Basso, President of
the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), reaffirming
Egypt's strong ties with the bank, a founding member and one of its largest
global operational countries. Discussions covered the current and future
cooperation portfolio, aiming to boost private sector investments. Al-Mashat
emphasized the vital role of multilateral development banks in fostering
sustainable development through concessional financing, knowledge transfer, and
capacity building. These institutions, she noted, are key in stimulating
investment in crucial sectors like infrastructure, energy, health, and
education, contributing to inclusive growth amid increasing global challenges.
The meetings included talks with Nadia Calviño, President of
the European Investment Bank (EIB), focusing on strengthening bilateral ties.
The minister highlighted the EIB as one of Egypt's most significant
multilateral development partners and a key member of the Team Europe
initiative, supporting a broad spectrum of development projects across critical
economic sectors.
Dr. Al-Mashat underscored Egypt's status as the EIB's
largest operational country outside Europe. She noted the bank's extensive
collaboration with other multilateral and bilateral development partners to
finance priority projects, citing its central role in the sustainable transport
axis of Egypt's "NWFE+" national program platform.
During the conference, she met with Nadia Fettah Alaoui,
Morocco's Minister of Economy. Their discussions focused on bolstering economic
cooperation between Egypt and Morocco, aiming to increase joint investments and
facilitate the exchange of expertise in development finance and regional
integration. Al-Mashat emphasized the deep-rooted bilateral ties, highlighting
the importance of strengthening economic development relations and mutually
benefiting from international partnerships, reflecting the "profound
fraternal and historical relations" between the two nations and serving
their peoples' interests.
Separately, the Minister’s bilateral agenda included a
meeting with Edmondo Cirielli, Italy's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and
International Cooperation. The two officials reviewed the evolution of Egyptian-Italian
economic relations and ongoing development cooperation programs, notably the debt-for-development
swap program.
Dr. Rania Al-Mashat also engaged with Simon Stiell,
Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC),
to review global economic shifts and their impact on development finance,
climate action, and green investments. Discussions included preparations for
the upcoming COP30 climate summit in Brazil. Al-Mashat stressed the critical
need to enhance the capacity of developing nations to access equitable climate
finance and to foster national platforms supporting both development and
climate initiatives.
In a separate meeting, she met with Maryam bint Ali bin
Nasser Al-Musnad, Qatar's Minister of Social Development and Family. Their
talks centered on the preparations for the upcoming Social Development Summit
in Qatar and how the outcomes of the Fourth International Conference on
Financing for Development could shape its agenda and research focus.
Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and
International Cooperation, also held talks with Carsten Stohr, Chair of the
Development Assistance Committee (DAC) at the OECD. Their discussion covered
the progress of their country program and its role in boosting Egypt's economic
development. They also addressed global development cooperation trends amidst
current economic challenges and the widespread reduction in development
funding.
Dr. Al-Mashat underscored the vital need to strengthen
partnerships with international financial institutions and multilateral
development banks to attract investments. She highlighted that development
cooperation efforts should prioritize technical support and financing for
project feasibility studies, recognizing these as crucial for sustainable
development strategies.
In a separate meeting, she discussed the outcomes of the
Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development with Jay Collins,
Vice Chairman of Citi Group. Their conversation focused on efforts to
restructure the global financial system and expand innovative financing
mechanisms to advance development funding.
Finally, Al-Mashat met with Lord Nicholas Stern, Chair of the Grantham Research Institute at the London School of Economics. They reviewed the evolving global development finance landscape, particularly in light of many countries reducing their contributions. They also discussed the agenda of the Seville conference and the significance of the "Sharm El Sheikh Guidebook for Just Financing" as an effective tool for enhancing fair climate finance for developing nations.