Egypt, World Bank Group Hold Intensive Talks on Climate Investment Fund Executive Plan

Egypt's Ministry of International Cooperation and the World Bank Group held extensive discussions with the Climate Investment Fund (CIF) mission on the executive plan for the Nature, People and Climate Investment initiative.

The three-day talks were focused on how the initiative can fund projects related to Egypt's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and the national Nexus of Water, Food, and Energy (NWFE) programme, according to a statement on Tuesday.

The event was attended by the Minister of Electricity Mohamed Shaker, along with key officials and representatives from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank Group, the German Development Bank, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), the European Investment Bank (EIB), and the European Union (EU).

Egyptian private sector companies, ministries, agencies, and research centres also took part, including HSBC, CIB, agricultural research centres, and relevant government ministries.

The CIF is a prominent global fund supporting climate action and financing in developing economies to achieve a greener, climate-resilient future.

Egypt's Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat affirmed this investment programme comes amid international efforts to advance green transformation, and Egypt's efforts to mobilize climate-related financing and engage the private sector in the NWFE programme.

The minister stated the technical mission aims to develop the executive plan and agree on procedures and priority projects that will benefit from the $40 million in soft financing and $4 million grant provided by the initiative.

Over three days of consecutive meetings, the CIF mission worked with the Ministry of International Cooperation to launch a comprehensive consultative process with all partners to develop the investment plan.

The mission concluded by setting three focus areas within the NWFE program: climate-smart agriculture, water management, and coastal zone management.

Further discussions will be held in December 2023 and February 2024 to complete the executive plan, agree on projects, and develop future steps by June 2024.

Launched in July 2022, NWFE is a national scheme meant to implement the NDCs, a document Egypt recently submitted detailing its commitments to emission targets by 2030.

The energy pillar of the programme aims to mobilize financing for 10 gigawatts of renewable projects by 2027, replacing 5GW of thermal capacity, using tools including grants, debt swaps, technical assistance, credit guarantees, and private investments.

The targeted investments in the energy sector amount to about $10 billion to implement projects within five years.

Egypt seeks to position itself as a renewable energy hub. In recent months, Egyptian state-run entities signed agreements and memorandum of understanding (MOUs) worth billions of dollars for green energy projects.

Last week, Egypt's Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) signed energy agreements worth up to $14.75 billion, signaling a new era of green energy in the region.

The country aims in the coming years to reduce carbon emissions and promote using renewable and alternative energy sources, including green hydrogen, as part of its National Climate Change Strategy 2050.