Minister of Finance Mohamed Maait and Head of the Office of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Egypt, Kato Ken, have signed an executive agreement for concessional development financing, which amounts to about 44 billion Japanese yen. This aims to support the state’s efforts to achieve comprehensive health coverage for Egyptian families.
The Minister of Finance said that this agreement is a new impetus for the development cooperation between Egypt and Japan. It contributes to enhancing efforts to complete the extension of the umbrella of the national comprehensive health insurance project throughout Egypt. It is also the main tool for reforming the health sector, and providing comprehensive and integrated health care for all citizens, with high quality and a proper price. This helps enhance the operational capabilities of the General Authority for Comprehensive Health Insurance, and increases the quality of the medical services provided to citizens. It also helps complete the implementation of the new system during the next seven years, and achieve the desired goals according to the specified timetable.
Maait stressed Egypt’s keenness on benefitting from the Japanese experience in various fields, especially the health sector, within the framework of the Egyptian trend to enhance cooperation with development partners from friendly countries. This is in line with the unprecedented development movement in Egypt, which aims to lay the foundations for a decent life for citizens. The sector of human development, with its axes health and education, is considered a top priority.
Maait pointed out that it is scheduled to extend the umbrella of comprehensive health insurance to the rest of the governorates of the first phase, which includes Suez, Aswan, and South Sinai, before the end of the current fiscal year and completing the rest of the governorates in succession.
For her part, Mai Farid, Acting Executive Director of the General Authority for Comprehensive Health Insurance, Assistant Minister for Economic Justice, highlighted the Egyptian government’s keenness to cooperate with development partners in implementing integrated health coverage.
For its part, the delegation of the Japanese International Cooperation Authority praised the efforts of the Egyptian government to continue expanding the comprehensive health insurance umbrella, stressing its keenness to provide all support for this project, and to transfer the Japanese experience in developing the health system to Egypt.
The agreement was signed in the presence of the Japanese ambassador in Cairo, Oka Hiroshi, Shino Masao, chief representative of the JICA office in Egypt, Hossam Hussein, advisor to the minister for foreign relations, Mai Farid, assistant minister for economic justice, and Doaa Hamdy, head of the foreign relations unit.
