The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Mark Green, is visiting Egypt from 24 to 26 March for meetings with senior governmental officials, partners from civil society, entrepreneurs, as well as representatives from religious communities.
Green headed to Luxor and Aswan on Monday for field visits before he is expected to come back to Cairo on Tuesday to continue his schedule, sources told Daily News Egypt on the condition of anonymity, adding that Green’s current visit to Egypt is his first one since he was sworn in as the 18th USAID Administrator in August 2017.
“Green is expected to meet the Minister of Antiquities, Khaled Al-Anany, during his visit to Upper Egypt, where he will likely meet senior officials at the education and higher education ministries when he arrives back to Cairo,” the source mentioned.
Green met with the Minister of Investment and International Cooperation, Sahar Nasr, to discuss collaboration on various topics, such as women’s economic empowerment and youth participation, a Monday statement of the US embassy said.
Private sector development, interfaith and community engagement, and the important role of NGOs in Egypt were additional main pillars of Green’s meeting with Nasr, the statement elaborated.
Green also met with Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly to affirm 40 years of cooperation between the USAID and Egypt. The administrator acknowledged the government of Egypt’s leadership under President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi in promoting religious pluralism.
On 24 March, Green met with USAID partners from civil society, to discuss their perspectives on challenges and opportunities for NGOs in Egypt, and about the country’s ongoing process to revise the NGOs Law.
Green also met with young entrepreneurs at Flat6Labs to learn how the USAID and the Egyptian-American Enterprise Fund are accelerating investment in early-stage and high-growth-potential companies to develop Egypt’s private sector.
Furthermore, Green visited Aslam al-Silahdar Mosque and saw firsthand how the USAID, alongside the Agha Khan Foundation, preserves important historic and religious cultural sites in Egypt in order to help foster economic growth and employment.
Finally, he also emphasised the important role of civil society in Egypt’s development journey and discussed ways to advance programmes of mutual interest.
