Egypt to Receive $500Mln Loan from World Bank to Address Food Shortage Crisis

Egypt to Receive $500Mln Loan from World Bank to Address Food Shortage Crisis

The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved on Wednesday a $500 million loan to bolster Egypt’s efforts to ensure that poor and vulnerable households have uninterrupted access to bread, strengthen Egypt’s resilience to food crises and support reforms in food security policies, including to improve nutritional outcomes.

In a statement, it noted that the Emergency Food Security and Resilience Support Project will help cushion the impact of the war in Ukraine on food and nutrition security in Egypt.

Russia and Ukraine are the world’s largest wheat exporters, and the war has driven up prices and created nutritional shortfalls, particularly for people who rely on bread for their daily nutritional needs.

The new project links wheat imports to direct assistance to the poor and vulnerable population through Egypt’s Bread Subsidy Program.

It will finance the public procurement of imported wheat, equivalent to one month of supply for the Bread Subsidy Program, which supports around 70 million low-income Egyptians, including approximately 31 million people under the national poverty line.

The loan will also support national efforts to reduce waste and loss in the wheat supply chain through the upgrade and expansion of climate-resilient wheat silos, sustainably improve domestic cereal production, and strengthen Cairo’s preparedness and resilience