The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will increase its annual funding for its 2021-2025 strategy to nearly €13bn compared to the previous record level of €10bn in 2019.
The increase, which was outlined at its annual meetings over the past week, will enable the bank to address the challenges brought on by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Also at its annual meetings, the bank saw its new 2021-2025 strategy approved, alongside several other important events, the most important of which was the election of its first female President Odile Renaud Basso.
The new strategy will see the EBRD reposition itself as a leader in green finance, with an ambitious plan to become a majority green bank by 2025. At the same time, it will increase the share of green financing to at least 50% of its total financing by the same year.
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, the bank will enhance its activities in the financial institution, industry, commerce and agribusiness, and sustainable infrastructure sectors.
The EBRD will focus on accelerating the pace of recovery caused by the pandemic, and strengthening the private sector by increasing its share in the bank’s investments to more than 75%.
Rania Al-Mashat, Egypt’s Minister of International Cooperation and the country’s Governor at the EBRD, said that Egypt commends the bank’s new 2021-2025 strategy. She said that the plan will help achieve a full green economic transition that is in line with the Egypt’s agenda.
Minister Al-Mashat praised Egypt’s strategic relations with the EBRD, adding that the bank’s investments in the country last year amounted to about €1.2bn. The financing went towards 23 projects, of which 80% were in the private sector.
It reflects the Ministry of International Cooperation’s role in coordinating with multiple development partners to strengthen economic cooperation and contribute to the country’s sustainable development.
The EBRD’s current portfolio of ongoing projects in Egypt amounts to about €4.6bn, of which €2.7bn is dedicated to the private sector in 92 projects, and about €1.9bn for the public sector in 13 projects. The total portfolio is distributed according to 45% for sustainable infrastructure, 23% for industry, trade and agribusiness, and 31% for financial institutions.
