CAIRO, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) — Egypt has made great strides in implementing its national strategy on green economy and is expanding its investments to carry out eco-friendly projects to improve the quality of life for its citizens, according to economic experts.
The North African country is currently implementing a series of green and environment-friendly projects in the sectors of energy, electricity, transportation, water, sanitation and irrigation.
The projects include the Benban Solar Park, a complex of solar power stations in Upper Egypt’s province of Aswan, which has recently been inaugurated by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi.
Egypt’s green projects in these sectors amounted to 30 percent of the state budget allocation for investments during the current fiscal year that ends in late June 2022, according to Minister of Planning and Economic Development Hala Al-Saeed.
The government seeks to raise the percentage of green projects to 50 percent of the budget allocated for investments in 2024.
“The Egyptian strategy for the transition to a green economy is part of Egypt’s 2030 strategy, as the implementation of projects under green economy regulations guarantees better financing opportunities for them from international institutions, and also improves Egypt’s rating in relevant indicators,” Egyptian economist Walid Gaballah told Xinhua.
Gaballah, also a member of the Egyptian Society for Political Economy, Statistics and Legislation, added that green projects have become a tangible reality in Egypt that citizens are following and talking about, such as the projects of Benban solar power plant, the electric trains, the natural gas-fueled cars and others.
“Increasing the percentage of green public investments this much reflects the country’s determination to achieve the requirements of its transition to green economy and motivate the private sector to go in the same direction, with an eye on becoming a pioneer in green economy in the region,” the expert said.
Egypt launched its national strategy on green economy in April 2016 during the African Ministerial Conference on Environment held in Cairo, and the Egyptian government vowed that the environment was one of the cornerstones of Egypt’s 2030 strategy.
The country’s strategy for a gradual transition to a green economy was launched in partnership with the United Nations Environment Program and the Center for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe.
“Egypt has made great strides in the field of green economy and is in the process of transferring its government to a new green administrative capital city that implements all the requirements of green transformation,” Gaballah said.
The Egyptian government has already held its first meeting with its full body at the newly built administrative capital city east of Cairo in late December 2021 as part of the gradual relocation of government offices to the new capital.
Egypt’s Red Sea resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh will host in November the 27th edition of the UN climate change conference (COP27) as announced by the international organization during COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021.
Experts believe the summit will be an opportunity to promote Egypt’s green projects and attract more green investments to the country, which will boost the Egyptian transition to green economy.
“Egypt has been chosen to host COP27 due to its efforts environment-related issues. This will certainly enhance its orientation towards a green economy,” said Egyptian economic expert Karim Al-Omda.
Al-Omda, a lecturer at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, pointed out that the energy sector is the most investment-attractive in Egypt, noting that the country seeks to gradually cover 42 percent of its needs of electricity through renewable energy sources by 2035, compared to 20 percent at present.
“Egypt is following a strategy of transition to green economy because it represents the future,” the expert told Xinhua. ■
OTTAWA – Canada’s unemployment rate held steady at 6.5 per cent last month as hiring remained weak across the economy.
Statistics Canada’s labour force survey on Friday said employment rose by a modest 15,000 jobs in October.
Business, building and support services saw the largest gain in employment.
Meanwhile, finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing experienced the largest decline.
Many economists see weakness in the job market continuing in the short term, before the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cuts spark a rebound in economic growth next year.
Despite ongoing softness in the labour market, however, strong wage growth has raged on in Canada. Average hourly wages in October grew 4.9 per cent from a year ago, reaching $35.76.
Friday’s report also shed some light on the financial health of households.
According to the agency, 28.8 per cent of Canadians aged 15 or older were living in a household that had difficulty meeting financial needs – like food and housing – in the previous four weeks.
That was down from 33.1 per cent in October 2023 and 35.5 per cent in October 2022, but still above the 20.4 per cent figure recorded in October 2020.
People living in a rented home were more likely to report difficulty meeting financial needs, with nearly four in 10 reporting that was the case.
That compares with just under a quarter of those living in an owned home by a household member.
Immigrants were also more likely to report facing financial strain last month, with about four out of 10 immigrants who landed in the last year doing so.
That compares with about three in 10 more established immigrants and one in four of people born in Canada.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says health-care spending in Canada is projected to reach a new high in 2024.
The annual report released Thursday says total health spending is expected to hit $372 billion, or $9,054 per Canadian.
CIHI’s national analysis predicts expenditures will rise by 5.7 per cent in 2024, compared to 4.5 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2022.
This year’s health spending is estimated to represent 12.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Excluding two years of the pandemic, it would be the highest ratio in the country’s history.
While it’s not unusual for health expenditures to outpace economic growth, the report says this could be the case for the next several years due to Canada’s growing population and its aging demographic.
Canada’s per capita spending on health care in 2022 was among the highest in the world, but still less than countries such as the United States and Sweden.
The report notes that the Canadian dental and pharmacare plans could push health-care spending even further as more people who previously couldn’t afford these services start using them.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
As Canadians wake up to news that Donald Trump will return to the White House, the president-elect’s protectionist stance is casting a spotlight on what effect his second term will have on Canada-U.S. economic ties.
Some Canadian business leaders have expressed worry over Trump’s promise to introduce a universal 10 per cent tariff on all American imports.
A Canadian Chamber of Commerce report released last month suggested those tariffs would shrink the Canadian economy, resulting in around $30 billion per year in economic costs.
More than 77 per cent of Canadian exports go to the U.S.
Canada’s manufacturing sector faces the biggest risk should Trump push forward on imposing broad tariffs, said Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters president and CEO Dennis Darby. He said the sector is the “most trade-exposed” within Canada.
“It’s in the U.S.’s best interest, it’s in our best interest, but most importantly for consumers across North America, that we’re able to trade goods, materials, ingredients, as we have under the trade agreements,” Darby said in an interview.
“It’s a more complex or complicated outcome than it would have been with the Democrats, but we’ve had to deal with this before and we’re going to do our best to deal with it again.”
American economists have also warned Trump’s plan could cause inflation and possibly a recession, which could have ripple effects in Canada.
It’s consumers who will ultimately feel the burden of any inflationary effect caused by broad tariffs, said Darby.
“A tariff tends to raise costs, and it ultimately raises prices, so that’s something that we have to be prepared for,” he said.
“It could tilt production mandates. A tariff makes goods more expensive, but on the same token, it also will make inputs for the U.S. more expensive.”
A report last month by TD economist Marc Ercolao said research shows a full-scale implementation of Trump’s tariff plan could lead to a near-five per cent reduction in Canadian export volumes to the U.S. by early-2027, relative to current baseline forecasts.
Retaliation by Canada would also increase costs for domestic producers, and push import volumes lower in the process.
“Slowing import activity mitigates some of the negative net trade impact on total GDP enough to avoid a technical recession, but still produces a period of extended stagnation through 2025 and 2026,” Ercolao said.
Since the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement came into effect in 2020, trade between Canada and the U.S. has surged by 46 per cent, according to the Toronto Region Board of Trade.
With that deal is up for review in 2026, Canadian Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Candace Laing said the Canadian government “must collaborate effectively with the Trump administration to preserve and strengthen our bilateral economic partnership.”
“With an impressive $3.6 billion in daily trade, Canada and the United States are each other’s closest international partners. The secure and efficient flow of goods and people across our border … remains essential for the economies of both countries,” she said in a statement.
“By resisting tariffs and trade barriers that will only raise prices and hurt consumers in both countries, Canada and the United States can strengthen resilient cross-border supply chains that enhance our shared economic security.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
