• EGP 111m will be invested in five governorates under phase two
• EGP 113m are being invested in six governorates under phase one

The Ministry of International Cooperation (MOIC), the European Union (EU), the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (MSMEDA) have launched the second phase of the community development program with a total financing of EGP 111 million. In the framework of the second phase, MSMEDA signed Framework agreements with five Egyptian governorates to support the provision and enhancement of community facilities, including drinking water networks, sewage networks, paving side roads with interlocking paving, schools, health clinics, and youth centres.

The Community Development Program (CDP) aims at financing investments in community infrastructure to improve living standards for disadvantaged and vulnerable persons living in and around urban centres in several Governorates in Egypt. The program answers multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including Decent Work and Economic Growth, Industry, Innovation, Infrastructure and Sustainable Cities and Communities.

The CDP is funded by a EUR 15 million grant from the European Union under the Neighbourhood Investment Facility (NIF) and is delegated to the European Investment Bank. It is implemented in two phases: phase one, worth EGP 113m million, which is focused on the projects to be completed by the end of 2020, while phase two worth EUR 111m is focused on works that will be completed by the end of 2023.

Under phase two of the program, MSMEDA signed framework agreements totalling EGP 111 million with five governorates. The projects financed under phase two include the upgrade of 1.75 km of water supply networks in Assiut, The extension and upgrade of 32.1 km of sanitation networks services in Assiut, Giza, Port Said and  Sharkia. The improvement of side roads quality and safety in Assiut, Giza and Alexandria, and upgrade of a local market in Alexandria.

Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Dr. Rania Al Mashat noted “Investing in sustainable and resilient infrastructure is an investment in human capital and the productivity of our nation. The Ministry of International Cooperation continues working closely with the EU and the EIB to provide sustainability-focused and community-based solutions paving the way to inclusive and enabled economic growth. The two phases of the community development program with MSMEDA stimulate sectors that are labour intensive accelerating job creation and generating employment opportunities”.

Dario Scannapieco the EIB Vice President commented on the launch of the second phase “As the EU bank, we continue to support a sustainable, modern economy in Egypt and to reinforce its economic resilience. The Community Development Program is progressing in a very satisfactory manner. Under phase one of the program, MSMEDA signed financing agreements totalling EGP 113 million with six governorates. The projects financed under phase one included the rehabilitation of five health centres in Menofeya, Assyout and Sharkia. The modernisation of 17 schools in Giza, Menofya and Port Said. The extension and upgrade 34 km of water supply networks in Alexandria, Giza, Menofya and Sharkia, The extension and upgrade 14.7 km of sanitation networks services in Assiut and Alexandria. The improvement of side roads quality and safety in Menofya and Sharkia using interlocking paving for narrow roads 83000 m2. And the modernisation of a youth center in Port Said. Further investments in these sectors will be supported with the financing of phase two”.

Ivan Surkoš, Ambassador of the EU to Egypt, said “The European Union remains committed to supporting Egypt in its sustainable development goals under the Egypt Vision 2030 and in particular under the Urban Development Pillar.  With our partners EIB and MSMEDA, we are contributing to enhancing quality of life of the communities targeted under the “Community Development Programme” through tangible improvements in the municipal infrastructure of a number of cities across Egypt. EU-Egypt partnership is concretely delivering and making collectively a difference at the ground level and we stand ready to increase our investment in the future to make the cities of Egypt and its inhabitants more resilient and prosperous”.

Eng. Medhat Massoud the GM and head of the Human & Community Development Central sector within MSMEDA said “the second phase of the Community Development program comes as an important module and one of several programs and projects managed by MSMEDA in full partnership with the European Delegation in Cairo and the EIB. The program is fully aligned with MSMEDA and the Egyptian Government strategic objectives in supporting the enabling environment for the growth and development of the small and micro enterprise in the country. While enhancing the living conditions in the targeted geographical areas, MSMEDA applies labour intensive methodology during the executing the community infrastructure sub-projects to generating the maximum employment opportunities. The list of sub-projects represents the targeted communities’ urgent priorities.”

Eng. Massoud added that “During the implementation phase one and two, the big challenge was how to protect the workers on the different sites at the various governorates against the spreading of Epidemic COVID-19, a guide was prepared by MSMEDA and disseminated to all the contractors and workers to abide with these high and conservative protective measures against COVID-19.”

• CZK 2 billion loan (equivalent to €79.3 million) will improve Pardubice’s infrastructure in transport, healthcare, education and culture and will improve energy efficiency in public buildings.
• The fourth EIB operation with this region included in cohesion programmes will bring EIB support for Pardubice to CZK 5.5 billion (approximately €202 million).

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending CZK 2 billion (some €79.3 million) to the Pardubice Region, located in Eastern Bohemia, to finance the implementation of its investment programme. Together with EU grants, the EIB loan will support investments amounting to €223 million, particularly in the transport (45% of the total), healthcare (37%), and culture (9%) sectors, and in the areas of education and energy efficiency (9%).

The investments will help to upgrade the quality and safety of regional roads, which have seen persistent under-investment over a number of years. They will also contribute to comprehensively renovating key public buildings (for health and social care, education, culture and administration), which suffer from either physical obsolescence, low energy efficiency standards or a lack of adequate equipment.

“The EU bank’s support for intra-regional connectivity, road safety and healthcare in the region will contribute substantially to better living standards and competitiveness”, said EIB Vice-President Lilyana Pavlova. “In light of the COVID-19 crisis, we are pleased to be able to dedicate more than a third of the financing under this new operation with the Pardubice Region to a healthcare infrastructure upgrade. We also welcome plans to modernise public facilities for culture and education, which are in line with EU’s regional development and cohesion policy priorities.”

“We have been de facto advocating the adoption of a CZK 2 billion framework agreement with the EIB since 2016, regardless of the current coronavirus crisis. If we want to maintain investment activity in the future and thus help the Czech economy, then it is necessary to adopt this credit framework. The projects that will benefit from this loan include the construction of a central emergency reception pavillion in Pardubice hospital, the construction of a new building for the aftercare hospital in Moravská Třebová, the modernisation of Winternitz’s automatic mills and projects for the reconstruction of lower class roads. In this case, it is not possible to use subsidies from the Integrated Regional Operational Programme or the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure,” stated Regional President Martin Netolický.

The current loan is a continuation of the EIB’s very fruitful long-term relationship with the Pardubice Region, which has been reconfirmed by this fourth operation. It brings the total amount of EIB loans financing the upgrade of Pardubice’s regional infrastructure to almost CZK 5.5 billion (some €202 million) in 13 years.

Some examples of projects to be supported by the EIB loan:

Health sector

Pardubice Hospital, construction of a central emergency reception pavilion with centralisation of acute operations

Moravská Třebová aftercare hospital, construction of a new hospital building

Transport sector:  

Modernisation of road II/337 Seč – Třemošnice (crossroad III/33741)

Modernisation of road II/315 Skuhrov – Lanškroun (traffic circle)

Culture:    

Reconstruction of Winternitz automatic mills for the regional gallery and Pardubice Castle – use and reconstruction of chateau exteriors and interiors

Education: 

Rainwater management of Agricultural High School and College Chrudim – and reconstruction of roofs of Grammar School Policka

Energy savings:

Upgrades of Higher Professional School of Education and Teacher´s Training School in Litomyšl and Secondary Medical School in Svitavy

June 08, 2020 General

IP Key Latin America addresses needs of European SMEs in webinar

IP Key LA and LA IPR SME Helpdesk -two EU-funded projects, have joined efforts in a set of country-focused webinars addressed to EU SMEs. Next 11 June 2020, IP experts from both projects will talk about Intellectual Property in Argentina: Tips to Manage and Protect your Intellectual Property Rights in Unprecedented Times, aiming to provide participating SMEs with essential practical information on IP protection and on its added value for businesses.

In the European Union and Latin America, SMEs account for 99 % of all businesses. They are a key element of both economies: according to EUIPO and OECD, in the last 8 years they have created around 85 % of net new jobs and provided around two-thirds of the total private sector employment in the EU. In Latin America, SMEs account for 67 % of employment.

 However, one of the main barriers to SMEs registering IPR, as stated at the 2019 Intellectual Property SME Scoreboard, is a lack of knowledge of what IP is and how it can benefit their business. Many are receptive to information that will support their business but there is still a need to improve awareness of the benefits of IPR.

This series of webinars, which started in Brazil and will continue in Argentina, Chile and Mexico, falls under IP Key LA strategy to disseminate information about IP registration and protection, its importance, and benefits to SMEs, in order to encourage them to make us or IP benefits.

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Ahead of a vote in plenary next week, this Friday the foreign affairs and trade committees will vote on recommendations about the continuing negotiations on the future relationship between the EU and UK.

On Thursday, the employment committee will decide whether to back the European Commission decision to classify the virus causing Covid-19 as a risk group three biological agent or push for it to be classified as risk group four, which would mean more stringent health and safety measures for workers.

Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, will discuss the bank’s response to the Covid-19 outbreak with the economic affairs committee on Monday. On Tuesday, MEPs will vote on changes to EU capital requirement rules for banks, which aim to allow them to better support businesses and households.

On Monday, the transport will vote on an agreement reached with EU countries on new road transport rules. The new rules cover maximum daily and weekly driving times as well as minimum rest times for drivers; define for which operations rules on the posting of workers apply; and electronic freight information.