• Kouchouk, at a panel discussion during the IMF and World Bank meetings in Bangkok:

    • Joint international efforts to build a stronger pipeline of development projects that can attract low-cost financing in developing countries

    • Strengthening economic partnerships between Africa and Europe to boost the competitiveness of African markets and uncover more promising investment opportunities

    • We look to make development finance for African projects in local currency more flexible .. to reduce financing cost risks

    • Tax and customs packages that support the business climate .. and initiatives that encourage production, manufacturing and exports

Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk said Egypt looks to development banks to play a bigger role in strengthening international partnerships to mobilise public and private capital for Africa, stressing the need for joint international efforts to build a stronger pipeline of development projects that can attract low-cost financing in developing countries.

Speaking at a panel discussion during the IMF and World Bank meetings in Bangkok, the minister said Egypt is working to strengthen economic partnerships between Africa and Europe to boost the competitiveness of African markets and uncover more promising investment opportunities. He added that Egypt looks to make development finance for African projects in local currency more flexible, to reduce financing cost risks.

Kouchouk explained that Egypt has implemented tax and customs packages that support the business climate, along with initiatives that encourage production, manufacturing and exports, to continue the path of simplification and support that has seen the private sector account for 65% of total investment.

The minister noted that Egypt has successfully prepared and approved 30 public-private partnership projects in the recent period, with an investment cost of EGP 41 billion, and has started implementing some of them. He added that further public-private partnership projects are planned in a variety of fields, ensuring quality of implementation, management and maintenance.