Egypt: parliament rubber-stamps Japan’s fund for Universal Health Insurance System

The Egyptian legislature green-lighted Wednesday a signed agreement between the Government and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in which the Japanese agency will provide funds for the country’s Universal Health Insurance System (UHIS), Ahram Online reports.
Egypt and JICA inked an agreement in March 2023 for the Japanese agency to provide a loan of 44 billion yen ($336 million) to fund Egypt’s health insurance system.
Repayments for the loan will take place over 15 years, with a grace period of 4 years and an annual interest rate of 0.01 percent.
The UHIS system covers over 3,000 diverse health services, including surgical interventions, medical analyses, radiology scans, tumor treatments, organ transplants, and prosthetic devices utilizing the latest advancements in the medical field.
The Arab country signed similar agreements with the World Bank, the French Development Agency, and the World Health Organization.