Editor
Egypt’s Local Development programme in Upper region was showcased at the Expo Dubai 2020, under the title of “Development and
Investment in Upper Egypt — Showcasing Best Practices.” The event was attended by
H.E. Mahmoud Shaarawy, Minister of Local Development, and Dr. Hisham El Helbawy, The Upper Egypt Local Development Programme (UELDP) Director. Each of them gave a speech on the continuous efforts to develop Upper Egypt governorates. The event discussed the benefits of investing in Upper Egypt and UELDP’s unique and fruitful model.
UELDP is a governmental program that was launched in 2017, focuses on economic
development and service delivery in marginalized areas of Egypt; the project targets four
governorates (Assuit, Menya, Qena and Sohag) in Upper Egypt, but piloting in Sohag and
Qena first. With around one third of the Egyptian population residing in Upper Egypt, the
government attached great priority to the development of this marginalized area.‘’The Upper Egypt Local Development Programme developed systems and working areas of the local administration, which we are working to generalize and replicate nationwide’’ said Shaarawy, Minister of Local Development. “EGP 350 billion were spent for the development of Upper Egypt in the last seven years,’’ he added.
Co-financed by the World Bank (WB) and the Government of Egypt (GOE), the programme covered a total cost of US$950 million. The UELDP aims to serve as a sustainable model that can be scaled up in other Upper Egypt governorates, by improving the business environment for private sector development, and strengthening local government capacity for quality infrastructure and service delivery.
The programme works on reducing the gap between urban and rural areas through national and international partnerships, funding institutional development, developing local capacities, and developing work systems so that the governorates can manage local development efficiently and effectively within a decentralized framework. It aims to showcase success in enhancing the business environment and promoting further investment in Upper Egypt.
