June 14, 2021: French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Sunday signed a 3.8 billion euro investment agreement with Egypt in the populous Arab country’s public transport and renewable energy sectors. France will finance Egyptian projects with French companies at 1.8 billion euros.
The first tranche will be for transport giant Alstom to supply 55 underground trains for Cairo Metro’s Line 1, for a total of 800 million euros financed by a loan from the Treasury.
The line, used by more than a million passengers a day, has dilapidated vehicles that are more than three decades old. The intergovernmental agreement includes nine other projects. They will receive one billion euros in funding between 2021 and 2025 from the French Development Agency (AFD).
With billions in funding, Egypt has become “France’s strategic economic partner” … the top country in terms of treasury loans, the French minister said. In addition to renewable energy, water purification and public transport, cooperation has been stepped up to provide funding for universities and social safety nets, Lee Mayer told reporters in Cairo.
Cairo, with a population of more than 20 million and known for its roadside closures, is in dire need of safe and effective public transport. The metro has three lines that are currently being expanded and three more are expected to be connected.
Egypt has been France’s largest arsenal since President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi took office in 2014. In May, Egypt bought 30 Rafale jets worth 3.75 billion euros. In December, French President Emmanuel Macron awarded Sisi the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor, the country’s largest award, which angered human rights critics.
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