Saudi Arabia pumps $400 million into Sinai development scheme: minister

Saudi Arabia has recently injected an additional $400 million as part of a Saudi-Egyptian loan agreement to develop the Sinai Peninsula, Egyptian Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr told Amwal Al Ghad on Saturday.

The total Saudi investments in Sinai, through the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), have risen to around $900 million, Nasr added.

The agreement, titled King Salman’s programme for the development of the peninsula of Sinai, was signed by government officials from the two countries in Riyadh in March 2016. The agreement was aimed at giving Egypt a $1.5 billion soft loan to help it develop Sinai and buy Saudi oil products needed for development purposes.

The programme includes building King Salman’s University in Al-Tor city, funding a series of agricultural and irrigation projects, and upgrading North Sinai’s network of roads.