Minister of International Cooperation Dr. Rania Al-Mashat said on Friday that Shali's restoration projects reflect the value of international cooperation and Egypt’s partnership with the European Union, which is built on shared values to protect cultural heritage and support sustainable development.
Al-Mashat's remarks came during her visit of the inauguration of the European Union-funded conservation project of Shali village in Siwa Oasis in the governorate of Matrouh.
She added that the project -which is a perfect destination for ecotourism- includes the participation of various actors committed to the development, from international institutions to the government and civil society.
The visit included Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled El Anany, Dr. Yasmine Fouad, Minister of Environment, the European Union delegation in Egypt, Major General Khaled Shuaib, Governor of Matrouh, and Munir Nemah, Chairman of the Board of the Environmental Quality Company, and a delegation representing the United Nations Population Fund in Egypt, as well as a number of ambassadors from Angola, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Latvia, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, the United States of America and the sheikhs of the Siwa tribes.
Al-Mashat said that the project to restore the village of Shali comes as part of the comprehensive economic development program financed by the European Union with a value of 15 million euros since 2016, which aims to achieve economic and social development through job creation, supporting small, medium and micro enterprises, and protecting cultural and archaeological heritage.
"Preserving the heritage and integrating different communities in development plans is one of the main goals of the Ministry of International Cooperation through providing funding from development partners according to the triple Ps of the Global Partnerships Narrative: people at the core, projects in action, and purpose as the driver," Al-Mashat noted.
The Shali Castle is located as an archaeological site within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, and the ministry is currently supporting efforts to restore the caste and support the local communities.
The cooperation between Egypt and the European Union is currently under the partnership framework for the period 2017-2020, worth around 432-528 million euros, to support several sectors, including sustainable energy, environment, social protection, stability and governance, capacity building and civil society, and the current portfolio of cooperation between Egypt and the European Union, about 1.5 billion euros in grants.
The Ministries of International Cooperation and Foreign Affairs seek, through joint coordination, to negotiate a new framework agreement for cooperation with the European Union for the period 2021-2027.
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