Ministry of Planning Unveils Guide for Performance Excellence in Local Investment Management Initiative

The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development has announced the availability of the guidance manual for the "Performance Excellence Incentives in Local Investment Management for the fiscal year 24/2025" initiative on the ministry's website. This comes as part of the preparations to continue implementing the initiative for the third consecutive year, in light of the positive results achieved during the first and second years (22/2023, 23/2024).

H.E.Dr. Hala El Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, stated that the initiative aims to enhance the role of public investment in achieving sustainable development goals, improving the efficiency and effectiveness of public spending at the local level, encouraging governorates to adopt best international practices in planning, monitoring, performance evaluation, and improving the quality of local services provided to citizens. This is in line with Egypt's Vision 2030 and Law No. 18 of 2022 on general state planning, as well as the application of best international practices in this regard.

Dr. Gamal Helmi, Assistant Minister for Sustainable Development Plan Monitoring Affairs, outlined the eight basic criteria for obtaining a performance excellence incentive within 20% of the approved government investments for each governorate. These criteria include participatory planning to involve citizens, civil society organizations, academia, youth, and women in preparing annual plans, as well as conducting feasibility studies to clarify the economic, social, and environmental impact of projects and their developmental benefits quantitatively and qualitatively.

Helmi added that the third criterion involves investment planning, with investment plans being prepared according to the methodology of programs and performance according to the integrated system requirements for preparing and monitoring the investment plan at the Ministry of Planning. It is essential to adhere to the financial allocations for administrative centers in governorates to ensure fair distribution of investments. The fourth criterion, related to monitoring the implementation of the investment plan, aims to evaluate performance in monitoring the annual investment plan's implementation and subsequent monitoring of completed local administration projects to ensure their entry into service and direct benefits to citizens.

The assistant minister explained that the fifth criterion aims to incentivize governorates to enhance the capabilities of specialists in public investment management in the fields of green economy, strategic planning, and digital transformation. The sixth criterion concerning transparency and public disclosure, aims to encourage governorates to provide information related to planning and public finances to all citizens by publishing citizen plans, the final implementation status of investment plans, and project details on the official websites of governorates.

In light of the state's efforts to integrate the environmental dimension into development plans, Helmi pointed out that the seventh criterion concerns greening the investment plan by involving rural governorates in the "Green Village" initiative launched by the Ministry of Planning. This initiative aims to qualify villages under the "Decent Life" national project for rural development to comply with the latest global environmental standards and obtain a "Green Community" certification, in addition to qualifying government buildings according to sustainability standards and involving governorates in the Smart Green Projects initiative. As for the eighth criterion for obtaining additional incentives, it focuses on enhancing governorates' capacity to develop their resources.

It's worth noting that the guidance manual for the initiative and the winning governorates during the years 22/2023 and 23/2024 can be browsed and downloaded from the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development's website via the following link: https://bit.ly/4bpH1qL