The 79th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 79) and The Summit of the Future in New York saw H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, continue her meetings with Ms. Eva Granados Galeano, Secretary of State for International Cooperation in Spain, in the presence of Mr. Sergio Colina, General Director of Sustainable Development Policies.
The agenda for the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), which will take place in Spain from June 30 to July 3, 2025, in cooperation with the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, was discussed at the meeting. It also included ways to improve data monitoring and evaluation systems.
In addition, the two parties talked about a number of other areas of mutual cooperation, most notably the significance of advancing integrated solutions that improve the effectiveness of public debt management in developing and less developed nations.
In this regard, Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat highlighted the Ministry’s efforts to promote structural reforms through Development Policy Financing (DPF), which is being implemented in collaboration with the World Bank, the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the European Union (EU).
According to Sada el Balad the meeting also covered the importance of advancing the agenda of localizing the Sustainable Development Goals based on the accumulated experience between Egypt and international financial institutions. Egypt launched Sustainable Development Goals Localization Reports in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
The UN’s global initiative Local2030 was brought up. Its objective is to assist in the local implementation of sustainable development goals by collaborating with governments, international and regional institutions, the private sector, civil society, and non-profit organizations to find creative solutions.
The topic of improving bilateral cooperation was discussed. These included taking advantage of Egypt’s government’s experience in sustainable development, putting gender-responsive budgets into place, coordinating efforts with other relevant parties, and addressing the role of relevant parties from both bilateral and multilateral development partners. Additionally, cooperation through debt swap programs was discussed, drawing on Egypt’s innovative experience in this area with Germany, Italy, and China.
