Planning Ministry begins work on 2nd round of 'National Initiative for Green Smart Projects in Governorates

The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development announced the start of the second round of the National Initiative for Smart Green Projects in the governorates of Egypt. Submissions will continue until the end of May 2023.

Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, confirmed that the initiative comes within the framework of Egypt's pioneering role in the field of sustainable development, and the importance the state attaches to the localization of sustainable development goals at the governorate level, noting that it focuses on implementation and application on the ground.

El-Said explained that the initiative emphasizes the seriousness of dealing with the environmental dimension and climate change within the framework of achieving the goals of sustainable development and digital transformation by presenting projects that achieve these goals.

El-Said drew attention to the development of a map at the level of the governorates of Egypt for green and smart projects, linking them to financing agencies and attracting the necessary investments for them.

The Minister of Planning referred to the success achieved in the initiative’s first round. She pointed to the progress of more than 6,200 projects, which were evaluated and 162 projects selected, or only 6 projects from each governorate.

El-Said continued that the projects participating in the COP27 conference have received many praises, noting the ministry's endeavor to deepen cooperation and partnership with various institutions to attract the necessary investments to support the initiative, pointing to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's announcement of its support for 6 projects from the winners of the initiative.

For his part, Ambassador Hisham Badr, General Coordinator of International Conferences at the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development and General Coordinator of the initiative, indicated that the initiative's goal is to spread awareness of climate change issues and challenges within all governorates of Egypt and highlight the role of the private sector and civil society in achieving sustainable development.

Badr stressed that the initiative seeks to encourage all groups to participate, especially women. This comes out of the state's interest in the participation and empowerment of women in all fields as basic partners in the field of development.

Badr indicated the readiness of the National Initiative for Smart Green Projects teams to work in the second round of the initiative. He pointed to the praise and support of international bodies for the initiative, and their interest in participating in the evaluation committee and projects.

The conditions for participation include that the project is within the geographical scope of the governorate, that it has already been implemented and has results supported by evidence, and that it includes a technological component and a component related to environmental sustainability (green), and that the project advances in its category, and submitting a written acknowledgment that the project has not received any other award. The initiative will begin in 2022, during the first cycle of the initiative.

Projects will be evaluated during the second round of the initiative according to criteria including environmental impacts, energy efficiency, renewable energy, economic feasibility, social impacts, degree of innovation, smart technology uses, fourth industrial revolution technologies, project capacity for expansion and replication, in addition to mechanisms for the sustainability of project results.