Minister of International Co-operation Rania al-Mashat, and Minister of Finance Mohamed Maeet launched the joint coordination platform, a new mechanism aiming at stimulating private sector participation in development projects around Egypt.
The platform adopts the slogan, ‘Strengthening Public, Private Sector Partnerships: Expanding Scope and increasing Opportunities’.
A large number of foreign diplomats and representatives of international agencies attended the launch of the platform at the Ministry of International Co-operation in Cairo on Saturday.
Minister al-Mashat said the platform would throw light on reforms made by the government in all sectors in the past period to encourage the private sector to participate in development.
She added that the platform would contain information about projects to be launched in various fields in the future, including in the ports, the health and the education sectors.
She said the government has recently signed a contract to establish the first dry port in 6th of October City in partnership with the private sector.
“The government plans to launch other projects as part of the infrastructure development plan,” Minister al-Mashat said.
She praised development partners for playing what she described as a ‘pivotal role’ in preparing the ground for these projects.
Minister al-Mashat, especially lauded the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank.
She said her ministry was able to open up new channels of co-operation with several international partnerships in the past period.
This in turn, she said, strengthened relations with the private sector and opened the door for the provision of $3.2 billion in international partnerships.
She noted that development partners also made $1.9 billion available to the private sector during the first half of this year.
“We always put citizens at the heart of our partnerships with international agencies,” Minister al-Mashat said.
