CAIRO, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian officials on Wednesday hailed BRICS New Development Bank (NDB)'s decision to add Egypt as its new member, expressing their anticipation of deeper cooperation between Egypt and other developing countries as well as emerging economies in the future.
The decision indicates that the NDB views Egypt as one of the world's fastest-growing countries boosting a pioneering economy in the Middle East and North Africa region, Egypt's Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said in a statement.
"Egypt is a firm believer and supporter of multilateralism. The NDB has established itself as one of the premier multilateral development banks for emerging markets and developing countries," Maait said.
The NDB has strong financing capabilities and relevant expertise that would help Egypt meet its financing needs and enhance its efforts to upgrade its infrastructure base for achieving goals of comprehensive development, he said, adding Egypt hopes to build a strong partnership with the NDB in the coming years.
"The NDB is a new platform for Egypt to enhance cooperation with BRICS countries and other emerging economies and developing countries in the field of infrastructure and sustainable development," he said.
Egypt is also willing to provide promising investment and development opportunities in various sectors that serve development goals, contribute to improving the standard of living of citizens, and meet their development needs, as well as to improve the quality of public services, he added.
Meanwhile, Egypt's Deputy Minister of Finance for Fiscal Policies Ahmed Kjok said the ministry is keen to "diversify sources of funding to reduce the cost of financing needs of development projects, in order to preserve the gains of economic reform, and to maintain a safe economic path."
Joining the NDB, which is in accordance with Egypt Vision 2030 and the country's sustainable development goals, will open new horizons for development cooperation and partnerships between Egypt and BRICS countries, Kjok said.
In an announcement published earlier on Wednesday, Marcos Troyjo, president of the NDB, said, "We are delighted to welcome Egypt into NDB's family. We look forward to supporting its investment needs in infrastructure and sustainable development."
Membership of the NDB becomes effective once the admitted country completes its domestic processes and deposits the instrument of accession.
Egypt is the fourth new member admitted into NDB, after Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates and Uruguay, further expanding the bank's global outreach.
Since its establishment six years ago, the NDB has approved about 80 projects for its members, with a total portfolio of 30 billion U.S. dollars. The projects cover sectors including transport, water and sanitation, clean energy, digital infrastructure, social infrastructure and urban development.
Headquartered in Shanghai, the NDB was established by BRICS nations, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The bank formally opened in July 2015. Enditem
