The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Commercial International Bank (CIB) have signed agreements for a US$ 60 million (€55.9 million) financing package to promote on-lending for green investments and to women-led businesses in Egypt.

Part of the package is a US$ 50 million Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF II), including US$7.5 million in co-financing from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), which will be used to fund investments in climate change mitigation and adaptation technologies and services. The financing will support private businesses in various sectors, including agribusiness, manufacturing and services, logistics and distribution, and information and communications technology.

The GEFF II loan will be accompanied by investment incentive grants from the European Union (EU) of up to €5.2 million to encourage the adoption of greener and high-performing technologies and solutions by local micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), as well as to support the development of resilient supply chains for green equipment.

This marks the third GEFF II credit line the EBRD, GCF and EU have provided in Egypt to help build a greener, more inclusive and competitive local economy through the provision of financing to local MSMEs.

As part of the technical assistance package, CIB will also introduce the use of the Green Technology Selector, the EBRD’s green technology transfer tool, to encourage collaboration by technology manufacturers and vendors to increase the local availability of climate technologies.

Through the GEFF programme, the EBRD has invested more than US$ 240 million in Egypt to date to support energy efficiency, climate adaptation and circular economy.

The second part of the US$ 60 million financing package, is a US$10 million EBRD Women in Business loan to promote the participation of women in the economy and provide financial, advisory, training and mentoring support to female entrepreneurs. It focuses, in particular, on women-led small businesses with fewer than 250 employees and less than €50 million in annual turnover. The programme covers most sectors and industries.

The two loan agreements were signed at the EU Investment Conference in Cairo, attended by EBRD First Vice President Jürgen Rigterink.