The Minister of Planning and Economic Development meets the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations to discuss deepening cooperation

H.E. Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, met with Dr. Vera Sanchouri, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the Economic Mission to Africa, to discuss deepening cooperation.



 The meeting was attended by Ms. Elena Panova, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations, Dr. Ahmed Kamali, Deputy Minister of Planning and Economic Development, Dr. Sherifa Sharif, Executive Director of the National Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development (NIGSD), Ambassador Hazem Khairat, Director of the International Cooperation Office at the Ministry, Dr. Mona Essam Rais Sustainable Development Unit in the Ministry.During the meeting, El-Said referred to the launch of the second phase of the structural reform program, pointing to the efforts of the Ministry of Planning concerning formulating recommendations for those policies that took place through a participatory approach focusing on the private sector as a major partner.El-Said stressed that the structural reform program focuses more on the real economy, by focusing on the sectors of agriculture, manufacturing, communications, and information technology with many basic pillars of greening the economy and strengthening the role of the private sector.El-Said explained that the efficiency of the labor market is one of the priorities that are focused on, given the large population. El-Said also referred to the environmental sustainability standards that were launched in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment.The Minister of Planning and Economic Development also reviewed the axes of the presidential initiative, a decent life, as it is a green initiative that achieves all the goals of the United Nations to achieve sustainable development.


El-Said talked about Egypt's sovereign fund, which is the government's investment arm, explaining that it aims to participate in and assist the private sector.El-Said added that various investment opportunities are being converted into investment products, noting the fund's participation in many major projects, most notably green hydrogen.Dr. Vera Sanchouri praised the policies taken by the Egyptian government to confront the COVID-19 pandemic, noting the positives of those economic policies, as well as Egypt's high growth rate.


Dr. Vera Sanchouri explained that a report was developed in cooperation with the London School of Economics to look mainly at all countries, including Egypt, to predict the amount of growth they will get if they decide to take a more sustainable path.

 Moreover, Sanchouri emphasized that Egypt has great opportunities to achieve great growth rates, especially in the fields of renewable energy. She also praised the Decent Life initiative and its development goals in villages.