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Egypt to Mobilize Funding ‘Green Banks’ Ahead of COP 27 Summit

Egyptian Minister for International Cooperation, Rania al-Mashat speaks during an interview with Reuters in Cairo, Egypt January 24, 2021. REUTERS/Sherif Fahmy
Egyptian Minister for International Cooperation, Rania al-Mashat speaks during an interview with Reuters in Cairo, Egypt January 24, 2021. REUTERS/Sherif Fahmy
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Egypt to Mobilize Funding ‘Green Banks’ Ahead of COP 27 Summit

Egyptian Minister for International Cooperation, Rania al-Mashat speaks during an interview with Reuters in Cairo, Egypt January 24, 2021. REUTERS/Sherif Fahmy
Egyptian Minister for International Cooperation, Rania al-Mashat speaks during an interview with Reuters in Cairo, Egypt January 24, 2021. REUTERS/Sherif Fahmy

Egypt has intensified efforts to mobilize financing for "green banks," in preparation for the COP27 Climate Summit, which it will host in Sharm el-Sheikh in late 2022.

Minister of International Cooperation Rania al-Mashat said that innovative financing tools are a catalyst to ensure that the international community’s commitments made at COP26 in Glasgow are implemented ahead of the next summit.

Mashat underscored the importance of bolstering multilateral cooperation to advance the main areas of action to achieve the green transition, namely, mitigation and adaptation projects to climate change, technology transfer, expertise and financing.

She made her remarks at the opening speech at the Green Banks Event “A Green Finance Facilities Ecosystem: A Three Trillion Dollars Opportunity for Africa,” which is organized by the African Development Bank as part of the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week 2022, held in Dubai, UAE.

The minister pointed to Egypt’s steps to advance national efforts and enhance regional and international action to consolidate the climate concepts, preserve the environment, and implement clear and ambitious plans for climate financing through an international framework for innovative financing.

She underlined the international financial institutions’ need to expand climate finance based on various pillars related to inclusion and justice, to ensure that the whole world, particularly the developing and emerging countries, can benefit from climate financing and green investments.

Mashat said all stakeholders, including women, youth and the private sector, shall participate in developing climate action plans and financing eco-friendly projects through innovative financing solutions, risk reduction tools and blended financing.

She pointed to the successive measures taken by the Egyptian government to promote green investments and push towards a green economy.

These include decisions to increase green public investments from 15% in the current fiscal year to 30% in the next fiscal year, followed by a 50% increase in 2024/2025.

In 2021, Egypt secured the first green financing from international and regional banks worth $1.5 billion, directed to finance eco-friendly projects such as water treatment and desalination plants, solid waste management, canal lining, and seawater desalination.

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Arab World

Outrage in Yemen Over Houthi Takeover of Sana’a University Land

A schematic of the area that the Houthi group decided to allocate to an investor (X)
A schematic of the area that the Houthi group decided to allocate to an investor (X)
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Outrage in Yemen Over Houthi Takeover of Sana’a University Land

A schematic of the area that the Houthi group decided to allocate to an investor (X)
A schematic of the area that the Houthi group decided to allocate to an investor (X)

The decision to transfer land from Sana’a University to investors connected with the Houthi group has caused outrage among Yemen’s academics and raised fears that other state lands and facilities could be targeted in the same way.
A recently leaked document shows that Mahdi al-Mashat, head of the so-called Supreme Political Council (the Houthis’ ruling body), ordered the allocation of 10,000 libnah (about 44.44 square meters for each libnah) of the university’s land to an unknown individual, Abdu Ali Hadi, for medical investment projects.
In late May, a directive ordered the allocation of an additional 40,000 libnah of land to Abdu Ali Hadi in the Bani Matar area west of Sana’a. This was proposed by the same individual who received land from Sana’a University.
University academics told Asharq Al-Awsat that these actions are seen as a deliberate attack on higher education, aimed at blocking the university’s future expansion.
One academic criticized the decision, noting that there are plenty of state-owned lands in and around Sana’a that could be used for development, but they are controlled and misused by the Houthi group.
The academic argued that targeting the university’s land suggests a systematic effort to weaken the educational system and turn its institutions into tools for promoting the Houthi agenda.
In recent years, al-Mashat has ordered the transfer of parts of Sana’a University’s land and buildings to the Endowment Authority, a Houthi-controlled body. This was widely criticized by academics and students as an attempt to plunder the university.
Another academic noted that the university’s Houthi-led administration has remained silent about these actions, suggesting a coordinated effort among Houthi leaders to misuse the university’s assets as part of their broader strategy to seize public property.
A third academic noted that before the Houthi takeover, corruption at Sana’a University involved only leasing land for the university’s benefit. In contrast, under al-Mashat, land is being allocated to individuals, benefiting specific people rather than the university.
The academic pointed out that previous corrupt officials did not dare to systematically target the university as the Houthis do, aiming to deprive the community of education and exploit public resources.
A university faculty member also recalled that three years ago, the Houthi administration decided to sell some university land to support combat fronts. The faculty member regretted that this decision was not well-publicized and the fate of the land remains unknown.
Criticism of the land decision has not only come from academics and social figures opposed to the Houthis but also from within the Houthi ranks. Some Houthi leaders and activists have expressed dissatisfaction and called for the decision to be reversed and for al-Mashat to be held accountable.
Pro-Houthi lawyer Hashim Sharaf al-Din has threatened to sue al-Mashat, arguing that the decision to allocate university land is illegal. He claimed it violates multiple laws, including those governing public institutions and state property, and has pledged to take legal action to overturn the decision.