Local Development Minister Mahmoud Sharawi discussed Friday 05/03/2021 with Resident Representative for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Randa Abu El Hassan and UNDP Gender and Local Development Team Leader Heba Abu El-Wafa ways of financing the Local Development Ministry's program that are being implemented in cooperation with UNDP.

During the meeting with Randa Abu El Hassan, Sharawi stressed the importance of cooperation between the ministry and UNDP in supporting decentralization, reforming the local administration system, technical support and staff capacity building, the ministry said in a statement.

Sharawi also reviewed the national project for developing Egyptian villages, under the umbrella of "Decent Life" presidential initiative.

This project will work to improve the quality of life for citizens living in villages, change their lives for the better and rise the level of their satisfaction for the services provided by the State, he added.

The minister noted that the project's first phase would include 1,443 villages in 20 governorates, where 17.5 million people live, including 11.6 million people living in villages in Upper Egypt.

Meanwhile, Abu El Hassan lauded the project, underlining the important role played by the ministry in following up the implementation of the project in the targeted villages.

The UNDP official stressed the necessity of posting the donors and international partners of Egypt on all the details related to the project's goals, as well as means of marketing it locally and internationally.

She underlined that UNDP is ready to offer all support for the ministry to render the national project successful.

Both sides agreed on continuing coordination and communication between the ministry's officials and UNDP to determine the fields of work in the Egyptian village development program. 

MENA