Skepticism looms over Egypt’s plan to develop Sinai
The Egyptian minister of planning announced $316 million worth of investments in the Sinai Peninsula for fiscal year 2020, but observers are skeptical in light of the threats posed by the Islamic State in Sinai.
SINAI PENINSULA, Egypt — Egypt’s government is allocating investments in the Sinai Peninsula worth 5.23 billion Egyptian pounds ($316 million) for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020. The Ministry of Planning, Monitoring and Administrative Reform announced the news in a statement Aug. 22.
This would increase by about 75% the government investments registered in fiscal 2019 in Sinai and falls within the scope of the Egyptian government endeavors to develop the area reeling under decades of neglect.
According to political analysts and economists, the Egyptian government is showing its commitments in the implementation of the Sinai development plan it embarked on in 2018. However, this plan faces major challenges amid threats from the Islamic State (IS) branch in Sinai, which the army is seeking to uproot from its stronghold in the northern part of the peninsula.
“The government's total investments in northern Sinai alone are about 2.85 billion pounds [$172 million], in addition to about 2.38 billion pounds [$144 million] in southern Sinai,” the ministry said in its statement.
