Foreign Minister Badr Abdel-Aati held separate meetings on Saturday with Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and Matteo Patrone, the bank’s Vice President for Banking and a member of its Executive Committee, on the sidelines of the 35th Annual Meeting of the EBRD Board of Governors.
During the meetings, Abdel-Aati praised the strategic partnership between Egypt and the EBRD, highlighting the bank’s vital role in supporting the country’s economic development efforts and structural reform programme. He reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to deepening co-operation with the bank and expanding its operations in the Egyptian market, particularly in priority sectors that support sustainable growth and development.
The foreign minister reviewed the latest developments in Egypt’s economic reform programme, which focuses on strengthening the role of the private sector, maintaining fiscal discipline, and improving public debt sustainability to enhance economic resilience and promote inclusive growth.
Abdel-Aati also highlighted promising investment opportunities across a range of strategic sectors, including renewable and clean energy, information and communications technology, artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, infrastructure, financial services, and the automotive industry, particularly electric vehicles.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to advancing a private sector-led growth model through expanding public-private partnerships and creating a more attractive investment environment capable of generating new opportunities for growth and employment.
The discussions also addressed the economic implications of ongoing regional developments. Abdel-Aati stressed that the Egyptian government has adopted a proactive approach to mitigating external challenges by securing energy supplies, strengthening food security, and safeguarding financial and economic stability.
He noted that the Egyptian economy has demonstrated considerable resilience in the face of regional and global shocks, supported by structural and monetary reforms implemented in recent years, particularly the adoption of a flexible exchange rate regime, which has helped absorb a significant portion of external pressures.
In this context, the minister underscored the importance of international financial institutions, especially the EBRD, adopting more flexible and responsive mechanisms to support member countries in addressing the economic repercussions of regional and global crises. He also welcomed the bank’s efforts to prepare a dedicated response package for the Eastern Mediterranean region.
For her part, Renaud-Basso commended the economic and structural reforms undertaken by the Egyptian government and the positive results achieved in strengthening fiscal and monetary stability, improving the business climate, and attracting investment. She reaffirmed the EBRD’s commitment to supporting Egypt’s development agenda and boosting its partnership with the country, one of the bank’s largest countries of operation in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean region.
Patrone likewise praised the progress achieved by the Egyptian economy amid the continued implementation of the government’s economic and structural reform programme, highlighting measures taken to improve the business environment and enhance the competitiveness of the Egyptian economy.
