The work of AICS in Egypt is an essential component of the extensive Italian presence in the country. Egypt is one of the 22 Priority Countries for Italian Cooperation, which operates there on the basis of the "Development Cooperation Framework Agreement" and the "Memorandum of Understanding regarding a New Development Partnership," signed in 2010. The Italian Cooperation's areas of intervention in Egypt are in line with the priorities of the EU-Egypt Partnership for 2021-2027 and take into account the development sectors identified by Egypt as priorities within the “Egypt vision 2030” document and in the “Strategic Framework for the National Economic and Social Development Plan” launched by the Egyptian Ministry of International Cooperation and the Egyptian Ministry of Planning.
The Italian Cooperation operates with grant and soft loans financing. Grant funding is provided on the bilateral channel (contributions to local entities and institutions) and multilateral channel (contributions to International Organizations and UN Agencies). Numerous initiatives are also financed through the Italian Egyptian Debt Swap Programme. An additional type of funding is counterpart funds, which is generated by the food aid programme.
In addition, AICS Cairo directly manages projects funded by the European Commission. In 2023, AICS Cairo managed a total of seven delegated cooperation programs, while also continuing defining new interventions, jointly with the European Delegation in Egypt.
Building alliance with the Egyptian and Italian private sector is also, among the objectives of the cooperation.
