Abou El-Enein participates in the UN International Investment Forum - Geneva 2018
The World Investment Forum, organized by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Investment (UNCTAD), was held in Geneva in the presence of 15 heads of state and government, ministers from 150 countries and more than 3,000 business leaders, officials of economic bodies, investment funds and international institutions, in the presence of Ambassador Alaa Youssef, delegate of Egypt in Geneva.
In his address to the Forum’s plenary session, entitled Legislation for Sustainable Development, Mohamed Abou El Enein, Honorary President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean , addressed 10 key issues for achieving development and building a better world for all with stability and prosperity.
Abou El Enein stressed the importance of mobilizing the international community’s efforts and resources to achieve the 17 goals of sustainable development in order to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.
He added that achieving these goals is related to the eradication of poverty, hunger, inequality, climate, deterioration, achieving weapons, prosperity and justice and ensuring good health and educational services and decent work opportunities. It will not be achieved by good intentions, but by the availability of the will, the mobilization of resources, the encouragement of investments, the opening of markets and the easing of burdens on developing and least developed countries.
Abou El-Enein’s speech before the UN International Investment Forum – Geneva 2018 – Part 1
He called on the United Nations, governments and parliaments to develop time-backed programs to achieve these goals, assess progress annually, create an appropriate climate and develop legislation that encourages the active participation of civil society and the private sector in achieving these goals.
He also called on developed countries to encourage their investment to developing countries by providing guarantees for these investments and providing concessional financing to them. China has allocated more than one trillion US dollars in concessional financing and specialized financial institutions have been set up, he said.
He also praised Japan’s initiative of “a free and open Indian and Indian environment” and its enhanced cooperation with Asian and African countries, calling on financial institutions and major countries to undertake similar initiatives to help developing countries achieve the sustainable development goals.
Abou El Enein stressed that Egypt’s experience in sustainable development during the past four years is a unique experience in which Egyptians triumphed over all challenges and conspiracies.
He added that the achievements of the past four years are evidence of the visibility, willpower and seriousness of implementation, pointing out that Egypt was able to dig the new Suez Canal in one year with pure Egyptian funding, doubled electricity production, established 1.8 million new housing units, extended more than 5,000 km of roads, created a new administrative capital equivalent to twice the size of Cairo, built a new generation of smart cities, added 1.5 million acres of new agricultural area and doubled the area of urbanization.
Egypt has also doubled the rate of economic growth, restored tourism, reduced the unemployment rate, achieved tremendous leaps in the empowerment of youth and women, established its new political system on the rule of law and equal citizenship, intensified its efforts in investing in education, health and culture, development of the investment climate and the promotion of small and medium enterprises.
A regional energy trading platform in the Middle East is undergoing a comprehensive modernization of the regulatory environment for investment and opening up new opportunities for the private sector.
Abou El-Enein explained that Egypt achieved all this and at the same time triumphed over terrorism and managed to secure its borders. He added that this vision connects the present to the future and is inspired by the achievements of the ancient Egyptian civilization to adopt a development march for an advanced and prosperous nation where justice prevails.
Abou El-Enein pointed out that what have been achieved is the beginnings and the next is better because the political leadership has future visions, will and popular support.
He warned of the repercussions of the destruction caused by the current wars in the Middle East on future generations and the resulting depletion of lives and resources and the destruction of future opportunities.
He added that if the international community wanted to find a solution to these wars, it would have been able to do so, but unfortunately there is an exploitation of these crises to achieve narrow political interests at the expense of peoples’ future.
Abou El-Enein’s speech before the UN International Investment Forum – Geneva 2018
