Egypt’s Planning Minister Calls for Expanded Just Financing for Developing Countries

Egypt’s Minister of Planning, Rania Al-Mashat, has called for an expansion of just financing for developing countries to support their development and climate change initiatives. Her remarks came during a keynote address at the Hamburg Sustainability Conference in Germany, titled “Scaling Impact Together for Transformation: How Multilateral Development Banks Can Work Together to Deliver Transformation of Country Platforms.”

Al-Mashat highlighted the Bridgetown Initiative,  to reform the international financial architecture to address global economic risks, including climate change. She stressed the need to restructure international financial institutions and increase capital flows to achieve sustainable development goals.

In her speech, she referenced the Pact for the Future, adopted during the Future Summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, which outlines political measures for reforming the international financial structure. Al-Mashat also discussed an innovative co-financing platform launched by ten development banks, including the African Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the World Bank Group. This platform aims to direct additional capital toward expanding the scope and impact of development and mobilizing funds for large-scale projects, as part of coordinated efforts in development finance and international financial reform.

Al-Mashat emphasized the importance of both quantitative and qualitative financing for developing and emerging countries. She called for enhanced triangular cooperation between nations and multilateral development banks to share knowledge, expertise, and developmental experiences, thus accelerating development and climate action.

She pointed out that the concept of national platforms emerged from discussions within the G20 several years ago, with the Glasgow Climate Summit serving as a pivotal moment for their focus. Egypt launched its national platform for the “NWFE” program during COP27, which represents a practical implementation of the National Climate Change Strategy for 2050 through investment-attractive projects in the energy, water, and food sectors.

The “NWFE” program serves as an effective regional model for facilitating finance to address adaptation, mitigation, and resilience challenges. Egypt has developed a comprehensive national climate strategy with key objectives up to 2050 and identified 26 priority projects through 2030. These projects focus on the three pillars of climate action: mitigation, adaptation, and resilience, emphasizing a just transition to a green economy through the nexus of energy, food, and water.

Al-Mashat also referenced the joint political declaration issued by Egypt, the United States, and Germany during COP27, which underscored the importance of accelerating the development and deployment of renewable energy. In response, the German government has supported the energy pillar within the NWFE program.

Furthermore, she highlighted Egypt’s efforts to enhance technical cooperation with other countries under the South-South Cooperation framework, sharing its experience in national platforms, including technical support provided to Tanzania. She mentioned the “Sharm El-Sheikh Guidebook for Just Financing,” launched during Egypt’s presidency of COP27, which outlines twelve key principles for enhancing partnerships, supporting climate action, and promoting a green transition.

In conclusion, Al-Mashat referenced Egypt’s Integrated National Financing Strategy (E-INFS), launched during UNGA79. This strategy is a collaborative initiative between the Egyptian government and the United Nations, developed within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals Financing Strategy for Egypt.  Led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in cooperation with various international organizations, the E-INFS aims to provide a comprehensive national framework for financing that enhances sustainable development in alignment with Egypt’s national development agenda.