Egypt’s Jabal Al-Jalalah project provides a comprehensive model of how sustainable cities can be the hub of economic growth and recovery, which will include all essential services; residential, commercial, educational and tourism ones included.



It will also provide about 150,000 direct and indirect job opportunities, in which women will have a large share in, complying to the national strategy to empower women, said Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat.



Al-Mashat made her comments during her speech at the 23rd annual conference of the Federation of Arab Women Investors, which is being held in the city of Al-Jalalah from 3-5 November, under the title ‘Arab and African investment and International Cooperation’.



The conference will include participation from the First Lady of the Congo State, Jean-Claude, advisor to the president of the Republic of Congo and Princess Sheikha Fajr Al-Khalifa from Bahrain.



Al-Mashat noted that building sustainable cities are engines for jumpstarting national economic recovery, as they not only combat climate change through less traffic and air pollution, but they also generate new investment horizons and landscapes for more job opportunities, and specially for women.



“The minister added that women contribute to nearly 80 per cent of the total food production in the Middle East and Africa (MENA) region, own a third of enterprises, and were able to reach about a third of the seats in parliament, which reflects the progress of women’s leadership role on a political and economic level,” said Al-Mashat.



She explained that the government is committed to pushing the envelope in empowering women, as it is currently implementing policies and structural reforms to advance the status of women in various political, economic and social fields.



To mitigate the negative economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, the minister expounded that it requires concerted efforts as well as achieving economic integration in MENA to encourage exchange of experiences and coordination of efforts with development partners, which in return can unleash the potential of emerging economies to move towards a promising future.



She also stressed on the need to strengthen regional supply chains to achieve food security, support the implementation of the African Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA), strengthen cooperation with regional organizations like the African Development Bank, and to capitalise on recent initiatives such as the G20 Compact with Africa (CwA) to promote private investment in Africa.



The ministry of international cooperation has mapped all projects within its current portfolio worth $25 billion in line with the 17 sustainable development goals, which ensure consistency and harmonization of all projects to achieve the global goals as well as the 2030 National Agenda.

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