Italy

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the principal institution responsible for development co-operation in Italy. The central unit for the management of Italy’s programme is the Directorate-General of Development Co-operation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Sustainable, social, human and economic developments are the main priority areas of intervention for the Italian aid programme. Development Co-operation is an integral part of Italian foreign policy and pursues the ideals of solidarity among peoples, seeking the fulfilment of fundamental rights. Public health, poverty alleviation, cultural heritage, public utilities and SMEs are the priority sectors of the Italian co-operation in Egypt. Furthermore, Environment is considered as a major theme for sustainability in Italian international development co-operation.

General Forms of Co-operation: aid is based on negotiations with recipient countries and is made effective through grants or soft loans for development projects or disbursement of funds as well as technical assistance. Also, the Italian Food Aid and Commodity Aid programmes allocate funds to export to Egypt food and essential commodities, goods, equipment and services produced in Italy as a special form of development assistance. These two programmes generate a local counterpart fund to finance further development projects. Finally, by signing with Egypt the recent agreement on Debt-for-Development Swap, Italy granted to Egypt a new counterpart fund for development projects.

Status of Ongoing Projects and Disbursements

Support to the New Library of Alexandria
Commitment: €1 million
Disbursement: €100,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: General Organisation for the Alexandria Library
Objectives: The development objective is to launch the Ancient books and Manuscripts Restoration Laboratory within the Bibliotheca Alexandrina into full operation as an international centre for the advancement of human knowledge, science and culture.

Improvement of the Productivity of Buffalo Husbandry
Commitment: €8.2 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation
Objectives: The project aims at providing technical and financial assistance to the buffalo breeders in the Delta and Fayoum areas, in order to increase the buffalo milk and dairy production in the country.

Italian Commodity Aid Programme
Commitment: €30.980 million
Disbursement: €1.2 million (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Ministry of Foreign Affairs /International Co-operation Section 
Objectives: The Italian Commodity Aid programme aims at the improvement of the balance of payments while supporting medium and large Egyptian enterprises. It creates new job opportunities, procuring goods and services in Italy that are provided in the form of grants to the public sector and soft loan, in local currency, to the private sector.

Support Unit
Commitment: €644,000
Disbursement: €120,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Ministry of Foreign Affairs/International Co-operation Section
Objectives: The Italian Commodity Aid Support Unit aims at providing assistance in managing the Commodity Aid Programme. It contributes to the advertising of the programme and it gives management administrative support to the private sector.

Support to the Egyptian SMEs

Financial assistance (credit line)
Commitment: €15.493 million
Disbursement: €2.510 million (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: SMEs (Private sector)
Objectives: To support Egyptian SMEs through financial assistance in the priority areas of: equity joint ventures with Italian SMEs, technology upgrading and innovation, employment generation, clean production and pollution control.

Technical assistance (Investment Promotion Unit)
Commitment: €2 million
Disbursement: €250,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: General Authority for Free-zones and Investment (GAFI)
Objectives: To support Egyptian SMEs directly through technical assistance and indirectly through Capacity building of GAFI and the banking sector.

Programme of Professional Training for Restoration and Archaeology
Commitment: €360,824
Disbursement: €20,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Supreme Council of Antiquities, specialised private sector
Objectives: The programme aims at providing Institutions, Companies and individual artisans with training in restoration techniques in order to enhance their specialisation in the field of restoration and preservation of the Islamic Archaeological Heritage. The programme also aims at increasing the institutional building of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

Support to the Health Sector Reform
Commitment: €1.6 million
Disbursement: €532,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Ministry of Health and Population
Objectives: The project aims at improving the Primary Health Care of the population in Behera and Qena Governorates, contributing to the definition and implementation of the National Health Sector Reform.

Expansion of the Medical Research Institute, II Phase
Commitment: €1.675 million
Disbursement: €75,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Medical Research Institute of University of Alexandria
Objectives: The main objective of the Medical Research Institute MRI is to improve the health conditions of the population, promoting the establishment of a Centre of Excellence in diagnosis, treatment, training and research for the control of tropical and infectious diseases. The first phase accomplished the establishment of the new centre and the second phase provides the functionality of the same through the technical assistance for the running of a specialised Department for Research and Services.

Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation Programme in Giza and El Menya, II Phase.
Commitment: €6 million
Disbursement: €1 million (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Ministry of Insurance and Social Affairs, Communities Development Associations
Objectives: The programme aims at providing support to the Egyptian Government in reducing poverty and creating job opportunities in the selected areas through social-oriented and marketing oriented components based on micro-credit schemes. The programme provides also institutional and capacity building to the Ministry of Insurance and Social Affairs as well as to the Community Development Associations.

Social Fund for Development
Commitment: €12.910 million
Beneficiary: Social Fund for Development/SEDO
Objectives: The project shares the objectives of the Social Fund for Development in promoting the Small Enterprises development.

Italian – Egyptian Environment Programme
Commitment: €6.1 million
Disbursement: €1 million (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA)
Objectives: The programme aims at providing institutional support to the EEAA in order to improve its planning capabilities for rehabilitation and protection of natural and cultural environmental resources and implementation of pilot projects within the framework of Egypt’s national and cultural environmental Action Plan Activities. The programme is made of 5 components:

1. Programme co-operation unit,
2. Support to Wadi el Rayan Natural Protectorate,
3. Environmental Amelioration of Siwa Oasis,
4. Decision Support System for Water Resources Planning,
5. Cultural Heritage – Risk Map of North Saqqara Site.
   

Egyptian – Italian Debt for Development Swap Programme
Commitment: €150 million
Disbursement: €44 million (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Objectives: The programme aims at promoting the relief of the Egyptian debt burden, while contributing to the social, economic and sustainable development of the country. The programme mainly finances projects on rural development, poverty alleviation and food security. All Egyptian institutions and non-governmental organisations can apply.

Integrated Migration Information System (IMIS)
Commitment: €1.8 million
Disbursement: €480,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Ministry of Manpower and Emigration,
Objectives: The project aims at strengthening the institutional and technical capacity of the Egyptian Government in managing migration.

Programme of Community Development through the Support to gender condition and pre-school childhood – Governorate of Sohag
Commitment: €800,000
Disbursement: €220,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Women Association for Health Improvement – Egyptian NGO
Objectives: The project is managed by the Italian NGO A.P.S., it aims at promoting the socio-economic development of the region through community strengthening. It concentrates mainly on community and mother-child support.

Development of the Communities through the growth of small and micro entrepreneurs in Giza
Commitment: €930,879
Disbursement: €228,000 (for year 2002 only)
Beneficiary: Small Enterprises and Community Development Association (SECDA)– Egyptian NGO
Objectives: The project is managed by the Italian NGO MOVIMONDO, it aims at improving the performance of micro and small enterprises, while promoting the culture of association among entrepreneurs.