Egypt Signs Letter of Intent of Blue Mediterranean Partnership Agreement to Enhance Benefiting from Financing Opportunities for Blue Economy Projects

The Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, signed a letter of intent for the Arab Republic of Egypt to join the Blue Partnership Agreement, which enhances the benefit of financing opportunities for blue economy projects, during the activities of the United Nations Climate Conference COP28 held in the United Arab Emirates.

The Blue Mediterranean Partnership is a joint platform for countries and international financial institutions that provides technical support for preparing and formulating projects and providing grants, within the framework of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) Working Group for the Blue Economy. 

Spain, Sweden and the EU contribute to the initiative, where the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) play a major role. It should be noted that the initiative was announced during the activities of COP27 in Egypt last year, with the aim of establishing a Mediterranean partnership for the Mediterranean countries, to support the development of a sustainable blue economy in the countries neighboring the EU in the Mediterranean region.

The signing took place in the Swedish pavilion at the COP28 climate conference, with the participation of Ambassador Nasser Kamel, Secretary-General of the UfM, Geert-Jan Koopman, Director General of the European Commission’s Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations Directorate, Werner Hoyer, President of the EIB, Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the EBRD, Jacob Granit, Director General of the Swedish International Cooperation Agency, Muawiyah Al-Radida, Minister of the Environment of Jordan, Christophe Pichou, Minister of Environmental Transition of France, and Rémy Rieu, CEO of the French Development Agency (AFD), Steffi Leckme, Federal Minister of the Environment and Nature Conservation of Germany, Teresa Ribera Rodríguez, Minister of State for Environmental Transition of Spain, and Mohammed Saeed Al Muhairi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment of the Emirates. 

Following the signing activities, Al-Mashat explained that signing the letter of Intent of the Blue Mediterranean Partnership Agreement is considered one of the milestones in the close partnership of the Arab Republic of Egypt in order to promote a sustainable blue economy and take the necessary measures to address the negative impacts on the marine environment within the framework of efforts. Intensive cooperation with the countries of the Mediterranean basin, to adapt to climate changes.

H.E. stressed that this agreement would preserve biological diversity in the marine environment of the Mediterranean basin region, and protect it from rapid climate changes that pose a threat to the status of biodiversity in that region, especially since this agreement coincides with the growing international concern about Loss of biodiversity and degradation of the marine system, threatening the economy and coastal communities.

Al-Mashat added that signing the letter of intent during COP28 comes as a continuation of the efforts made by the international community during COP27 in Egypt, where that initiative was announced. She mentioned that this is also an opportunity to confirm Egypt’s commitment to solving the problem of climate change, through the implementation of the Blue Mediterranean Partnership by developing sustainable cooperation in the blue economy in the Mediterranean region.

H.E. continued that this partnership emphasizes the importance of multilateral cooperation through joint work between the EBRD, the EIB, and the UfM, to support the development of the blue economy in the region, through intensifying cooperation between relevant parties to stimulate a sustainable blue economy through three goals: 1) Supporting sustainable blue economy investments in partnership between the government and private sectors, 2) Improving sustainable blue economy practices in project design and implementation and 3) Creating and enhancing environments that stimulate sustainable investments through the development of strategies, policies and regulatory frameworks.

Finally, Al-Mashat stressed the strong partnership between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the various multilateral and bilateral development partners, which enhances benefit and joint work in light of the Blue Mediterranean Partnership Agreement, especially by working with the EU, the EBRD, the EIB, the AFD, the German Construction Bank, and the UfM, in addition to the participating countries represented by Jordan, Morocco, and Spain, stressing that Egypt will be keen to direct this partnership through designing projects in cooperation with partners in a way that enhances adaptation to climate change and stimulates moving from pledges to implementation.

The initiative arose based on the UfM’s vision of the necessity of launching an initiative to implement blue economy projects directed to the southern Mediterranean countries and non-EU member states, with the participation of European financing institutions, to implement the Second Ministerial letter of the UfM for the Blue Economy in June 2022.

The Blue Partnership Document includes many areas, including areas related to joint work with the Arab Republic of Egypt, namely reducing plastic waste, sustainable marine food systems, marine tourism, sustainable maritime transport, and renewable marine energy.