The AfDB has raised more finance than expected for water projects in Egypt: The African Development Bank (AfDB) has mobilized USD 2.2 bn to improve Egypt’s water security under the government’s Nexus for Water, Food and Energy (NWFE) program, up from the initially targeted USD 1.4 bn, the bank’s president Akinwumi Adesina said yesterday. The money will “support desalination and water treatment plants for agriculture,” he said, speaking at the bank’s annual meetings in Sharm El Sheikh (watch, runtime: 3:31:35). The lender was tapped as the lead partner on NWFE’s water pillar last year.

More to come: The AfDB’s Just Green Transition initiative, which utilizes financial and technical support from the Climate Investment Funds to help African nations transition to “low-carbon and climate-resilient development,” has over USD 14.8 bn of projects in the pipeline for the NWFE program.

NWFE? The International Cooperation Ministry’s program seeks to raise blended finance for nine projects worth a combined USD 15 bn. These include a massive energy project, five projects in the field of agriculture and food security, and three in irrigation and water resources. The program was launched ahead of last year’s COP27 climate summit.

A lot of big names have already committed funds: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development — the lead partner on NWFE’s energy pillar — has allocated USD 200-300 mn to the energy track of the program. The money will help Egypt to decommission 5 GW of gas-fired power plants starting this year. The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is committing USD 200 mn to the food track, while a number of other organizations partnering with IFAD are providing another USD 775 mn.

AfDB is no stranger to Egypt’s water projects: The bank has lent the Madbouly government some USD 57.5 mn for wastewater treatment plant in Cairo’s Gabal El Asfar and USD 150 mn for the wastewater treatment plant in Abu Rawash.

SISI + MADBOULY IN SHARM-

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi held meetings with a number of African leaders — from Comoros, Zimbabwe, Burundi — on the sidelines of the meetings. He also held discussions with the COMESA secretary general, head of the African Union Development Agency, and head of the African Union Commission on all things trade and investment.

It was a busy day for Madbouly too: Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly discussed healthcare cooperation and livestock imports with his Somali counterpart Hamza Abdi Barre. The PM also held talks with the Qatari Social Development Minister Maryam Al Misnad. The AfDB meetings run through to Friday.

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