By Manal Abdel Fattah
The Embassy of Denmark in Egypt held a roundtable discussion entitled “Green Job Opportunities and Sustainable Development in Egypt: Building Equal Partnerships in Africa” with the aim of supporting Egypt’s journey – and Africa as a whole – towards a more sustainable future and with the aim of supporting the Danish government’s plan to develop a new strategy for Africa, to reach out to Egyptian partners. and Africans, to listen and get their input as part of strategy development.
According to a statement issued by the Danish Embassy in Cairo, the aim of the roundtable was also to promote green partnerships, to support Egypt in reaching its aspirations of creating new jobs annually, many of which should be in the field of climate and energy.
The Danish Ambassador to Egypt, Anne Dorte Rijlsen, hosted the roundtable at her residence. The roundtable included a distinguished gathering of ambassadors and representatives of the European Union, South Africa, Morocco, and Kenya, in addition to representatives of the Egyptian government, including the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the Ministry of Electricity, the Ministry of Planning, and the Ministry of Cooperation. International, and the Cairo International Center for Conflict Resolution, Preservation and Peacebuilding, along with key decision makers from leading Egyptian and Danish companies such as Orascom, Juhayna, Freeze, Novonisys, and DSV.
The roundtable also saw key contributions from representatives of leading financial and international organizations, including the International Finance Corporation, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the United Nations Development Programme, and the Federation of Egyptian Industries.
The ambassador said, during the roundtable discussions: “Denmark is keen to help its strategic partner, Egypt, achieve its ambitious sustainable development goals on its way to creating millions of job opportunities. There are job opportunities and great potential in green fields such as renewable energy, sustainable solutions, and sustainable production.”
The roundtable discussion is part of the Danish government’s upcoming strategy in Africa to increase Danish engagement with partners on the continent, which is scheduled to be completed and launched next August.
The climate partnership between Denmark and Egypt dates back to the 1980s and 1990s, when Denmark helped Egypt develop the first wind atlas, and Denmark contributed to the development of the Zaafarana wind farm in the 2000s, and since 2019, Denmark has cooperated closely with the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy and the Egyptian Ministry of International Cooperation to improve… Modeling energy systems, training the public sector, creating a renewable energy roadmap, and moving towards an efficient energy market in Egypt with the creation of an online energy registry to improve energy efficiency. Danish financing institutions have also supported the Benban Solar Park, located in the Western Desert of Egypt, and recently pledged to provide… 100 million euros to support energy transmission in Egypt.
