H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, held a meeting at the ministry’s headquarters in the New Administrative Capital with Japan’s Ambassador to Cairo, IWAI Fumio. The discussion focused on the executive plan for the outcomes and recommendations from H.E.’s visit to Japan in December 2024, as well as exploring ways to enhance bilateral cooperation between Egypt and Japan.
At the beginning of the meeting, H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat congratulated Ambassador IWAI Fumio on his appointment as Japan’s Ambassador to Egypt, a position he assumed in November 2024.
During the meeting, H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat emphasized the depth of the longstanding Egyptian-Japanese relations, which have elevated to the level of a strategic partnership following the agreement between H.E. President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during his visit to Egypt in 2023. This agreement marks the culmination of a long history of fruitful relations between the two countries, spanning nearly 70 years of developmental cooperation. H.E. Dr. Al-Mashat reiterated the Egyptian government’s appreciation for its partnership with Japan and the constructive and substantive collaborations in many strategic sectors.
H.E. Minister Al-Mashat also referred to her visit to Japan in December 2024, which saw the signing of several important agreements for developmental projects and funding in the form of grants and development financing totaling $234 million. These funds are aimed at supporting the budget, developing the private sector, improving the livelihoods of small farmers in Egypt, and developing the Egyptian Opera House.
H.E. Dr. Al-Mashat highlighted the Policy Development Program for improving the Egyptian private sector and diversifying the economy, which seeks to support the national budget, enhance structural reforms, and promote private sector investments by encouraging competitiveness and improving the business environment.
H.E. Minister Al-Mashat further explained that the Egyptian-Japanese cooperation portfolio includes numerous developmental projects that benefit the transportation, antiquities, and sectors that promote investment in human capital, such as health, education, higher education, and technical education. These projects include: the first phase of the Fourth Line of the Cairo Metro, the Grand Egyptian Museum, Egyptian-Japanese schools, the Egyptian-Japanese University of Science and Technology, the creation of outpatient clinics for the Children’s University Hospital (Abu El-Reesh), the development of Borg El Arab Airport, and the construction of the New Dairout Barrage, as well as cooperation in the Comprehensive Health Insurance project. Additionally, the collaboration supports the development of infrastructure and efforts to transition to renewable energy, all contributing to inclusive and sustainable growth. These efforts align with the Ministry of Planning’s two main roles: devising development strategies and strengthening international partnerships to support Egypt’s economic and developmental priorities.
H.E. Dr. Al-Mashat also reviewed the Egyptian government’s efforts to enhance the involvement of the private sector in development, as well as the structural reforms being implemented to foster sustainable and inclusive growth. She pointed out that the structural reform matrix aims to achieve three key pillars: ensuring macroeconomic stability and resilience, improving competitiveness and the business environment, and fostering the green transition. In 2024, 86 measures were implemented within the structural reform agenda to enhance the stability of the Egyptian economy and improve the business environment.
H.E. Dr. Al-Mashat affirmed the importance of international development partners’ contributions to the Egyptian government’s economic and structural reforms, which strengthen the private sector’s role as a key player in development and contribute to Egypt’s vision for inclusive and sustainable growth.
The meeting also addressed how Egypt can benefit from Japan’s distinguished expertise in artificial intelligence, and cooperation with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and various Egyptian ministries to study the integration of AI into projects being implemented in partnership with Japan. This aims to advance Egypt’s AI agenda, with a focus on integrating it into governance, applications in various economic sectors, skill development, and infrastructure enhancement.
Additionally, the meeting discussed enhancing cooperation with Japan in the field of education, specifically through activating the Japanese Technical Education model (EJ-KOSEN) at some technical institutes under the Ministry of Education. There were also talks about expanding the number of Egyptian-Japanese schools to include the governorates covered by the “Haya Karima” initiative.
For his part, the Japanese Ambassador emphasized the deep relations between Egypt and Japan, stressing his country’s commitment to continuing constructive cooperation between the two nations at the economic and investment levels, to serve shared interests and support development efforts in Egypt.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation – Egypt.