Egypt, AFD discuss plans to enhance healthcare services

Egypt’s Health Minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar met on Wednesday with a French Development Agency (AFD) delegation to discuss health sector cooperation, ongoing projects, and future collaboration opportunities.

Abdel Ghaffar appreciated AFD’s support in developing Egypt’s health sector, emphasising the partnership’s role in achieving sustainable development goals and improving healthcare services for citizens, as per a Cabinet statement.

The meeting focused on discussing current and future areas of cooperation in various health fields. He highlighted that they reviewed progress on joint projects, including healthcare support, upgrading health units, and bringing in French experts in health planning and economics, the statement added.

Both sides considered collaboration on training programmes for medical teams in hospital management, assessment, and follow-up, including sending teams to French hospitals for knowledge exchange in various specialties.

The meeting discussed a potential EU-backed project to enhance health units in Egypt to meet General Authority for Health Accreditation and Regulation (GAHAR) standards, supporting the country’s healthcare quality improvement plan.

Abdel Ghaffar announced plans to recruit French experts in hospital management for providing on-the-job training in several governorates as part of the second phase of the health insurance system, the statement added.

The meeting also addressed shared challenges, particularly the high neonatal mortality rates, and discussed opportunities for cooperation through the exchange of scientific expertise, as per the announcement.

Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English

Subediting: M. S. Salama