
(Northern Africa) (4 minutes read)
Minister of International Cooperation and Governor of Egypt at the World Bank, Rania Al Mashat, participated in the ‘Global Economic Prospects’ session as part of the annual meetings organized by the World Bank recently
The meeting discussed the impact COVID-19 had on regional economies. The Global Economic Prospects report released recently had published recent economic indicators mapping the impact of the pandemic world-wide
Minister of International Cooperation and Governor of Egypt at the World Bank, Rania Al Mashat, participated in the ‘Global Economic Prospects’ session as part of the annual meetings organized by the World Bank recently. The meeting discussed the impact COVID-19 had on regional economies. The Global Economic Prospects report released recently had published recent economic indicators mapping the impact of the pandemic world-wide.
Participating in the discussion, Al Mashat said that the post-Covid-19 recovery should be infrastructure-led since that could generate more employment to help the more vulnerable sections of the society. According to World Bank data, renewable energy projects ensure long-term job creation than fossil fuel projects. Additionally, the International Renewable Energy Agency estimates that investment in renewable energy could add almost US$100 trillion to global GDP by 2050. Investment in infrastructure is also critical for promoting an inclusive society. The minister laid importance to the development of Egyptian small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the need to integrate them to regional and global value chains (RGVCs).
The minister added that currently there are over 42 projects worth 6,354 million dollars are implemented. Egypt, according to the multilateral agency’s report, would achieve growth between 2 % and 3% during the current year, bucking the global trend of severe contraction of global economic growth. According to the 2020 Global Economic Prospects report, economic activity in the Middle East and North Africa is expected to contract by more than 4 percent in 2020, due to the disruption of consumption, exports, and services activity by the COVID-19 pandemic.