The World Bank on 29 June agreed to loan Egypt $500mn to help Cairo deal with a soaring food import bill. The loan will “bolster Egypt’s efforts to ensure that poor and vulnerable households have uninterrupted access to bread,” the World Bank says, with the ultimate aim to “help cushion the impact of the war in Ukraine on food and nutrition security in Egypt.”
Russia’s February invasion of Ukraine has driven up the price of many commodities, especially wheat as the two countries are the world’s largest exporters. “Bread is a staple in Egypt and this new project links wheat imports to direct assistance to the poor and vulnerable population through Egypt’s Bread Subsidy Program,” the World Bank adds. (CONTINUED - 172 WORDS)