Cairo: Egypt is poised to sign a memorandum of understanding with the European Union later this year for a £4 billion ($4.3 billion) financing package, as stated by Rania Al-Mashat, the Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation.

According to State Information Service Egypt, this financing is a segment of a larger £7.4 billion agreement made between Egypt and the EU in March of last year. The package is designed to support Egypt’s economy and address the challenge of limiting future migration across the Mediterranean, with European states seeking to bolster Egypt’s financial position.

Al-Mashat confirmed the news during a press conference on Wednesday, noting that discussions surrounding the funding have been ongoing with a visiting EU delegation since early March. She expressed confidence that the EU’s 27 member states would adopt the financing plan by June. As part of the agreement, Egypt received the first tranche of the £7.4 billion package, totaling £1 billion, in January. The remaining £5 billion, which falls under the EU’s macro-financial assistance program, requires approval from both the European Parliament and EU member states.

The £7.4 billion package also includes investments and grants and came in response to Egypt’s worsening financial conditions, exacerbated by various regional crises, including the Gaza war, Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, and the ongoing fallout from the war in Ukraine. In addition to this agreement, Egypt has signed a record investment deal with the United Arab Emirates and secured an extension of its $8 billion program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2024.

EU-Egyptian cooperation covers a multitude of fields, including the INTERREG NEXT MED cross-border cooperation program, funded by the European Union, which secured £134 million in funding. In early March, Al-Mashat announced that her ministry is working on launching the Investment Guarantees for Development Mechanism in partnership with the EU. This initiative aims to activate £1.8 billion in investment guarantees, with the goal of mobilizing up to £5 billion in investments to support green transition sectors and other priority areas.