Egypt water projects receive 19% of concessional development financing
These projects aim to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG6): Clean water and sanitation for all, Al-Mashat explained during her participation in the G20 Development Working Group (DWG) meetings being held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The DWG acts as G20’s coordinating body for development policies, focusing on achieving the SDGs to promote economic growth, environmental protection, and social inclusion.
Minister Al-Mashat added that Egypt has been carrying out a series of these projects, with the aim of enhancing national capacities and addressing water security challenges, such as the Bahr El Baqar wastewater treatment plant, water desalination projects, and water and wastewater services projects.
She also reviewed the international initiative Action on Water Adaptation or Resilience (AWARe) Egypt launched during COP27 to address water and climate-related challenges at the global level.
Al-Mashat said the initiative focuses on developing countries most affected by climate change, by supporting on-ground project implementation efforts.
She stressed the need for providing the necessary funding for water sector adaptation projects as being “a major focus for achieving sustainable development in various countries.”
The minister called for mobilizing diverse financial resources for water planning and infrastructure systems, highlighting the difficulties in financing water systems flexibly and sustainably
The minister expressed the importance of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD) scheduled to be held in 2025 in Spain.
This conference aims to address the financial challenges facing sustainable development, which primarily affect developing countries and hinder their ability to make necessary investments in this field.
Referring to the Brazilian G20 presidency's call to enhance drinking water services, Al-Mashat stressed that access to these services is a basic condition for health and nutrition.
She added that with the world facing climate change, environmental degradation, loss of biodiversity, and pollution, achieving sustainable access to safe and affordable drinking water has become more urgent and challenging.