The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has received about $125m from the World Bank as part of a loan to implement the local development programme in Upper Egypt.

The Minister of State for Planning El Saeed said, “After the financial transfer, we reviewed the components of the project to ensure that the achievement of its development goals and the largest economic and social returns according to the report of studies and experts shared.”

“In this context, we have agreed with the World Bank on a full review of the project’s outputs, mechanisms, management, organisational, planning, and coordination aspects, and then start the actual implementation,” El Saeed added.

El Saeed also revealed that Prime Minister Sherif Ismail revealed that all obstacles facing the implementation of the local development programme in Upper Egypt, financed by a loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), would be achieved.

El Saeed stressed that the Egyptian government is exerting double efforts to improve the economic and social situation of citizens and the local development programme in Upper Egypt.

The results of this review were discussed with the World Bank mission, which visited the Ministry of Planning last month as the ministry that chairs the project’s steering committee.

El Saeed said that there are serious efforts to immediately begin the completion of procedures to start the implementation of the programme for the benefit of the large provinces of Qena and Sohag, one of the poorest provinces of Egypt.

El Saeed added that in parallel with the implementation of the local development programme in Upper Egypt, the Egyptian government is taking several reform steps that will help this project, such as the new local administration law to be issued soon, which will give new responsibilities and powers to the governorates.

In addition to the local planning system and the preparation of local development plans for a period of three years, and the definition of financial ceilings for each province based on a funding equation and others. These reforms require good and substantial preparations, as well as capacity building.