China-led AIIB bank to discuss Egypt loan request in Sept: minister

The China-initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will start discussing in September an Egyptian request to have financing for some infrastructure projects in the country, Finance Minister Amr el-Garhy said Tuesday.

The financing upon-request will be go for a number of projects in Egypt’s infrastructure sector, notably in new and renewable energy, the Egyptian minister said.

Officially opened in January in 2016, the Beijing-based AIIB is a multilateral development bank initiated by China and supported by a wide range of countries and regions, which will provide financing for infrastructure improvement in Asia.

First proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping two years ago, the bank has become one of China’s biggest foreign policy successes. Despite the opposition of Washington, major U.S. allies such as Australia, Britain, Germany, Italy, the Philippines and South Korea have joined.

The capital of the bank is $100 billion, equivalent to 2⁄3 of the capital of the Asian Development Bank and about half that of the World Bank.

The AIIB’s mandate will be to fund projects both inside and outside of Asia.