Egypt has started the procedures of obtaining a USD 400 mn World Bank facility to support its health insurance system, Invest-Gate reports.

This came after the World Bank approved increasing the facility value from the previous USD 250 mn, according to a cabinet statement on April 29.

The new facility aims to finance the inclusion of vulnerable groups in the system, upgrade the healthcare infrastructure in the governorates where the new system is adopted, and to provide structural support for the system.

In November 2019, the World Bank program announced a USD847.69 mn program to support the health insurance system.

The program was extended from January 12 to March 31, 2020, with USD 510 mn fund provided by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, a lending arm of the World Bank Group, and USD 337.69 mn from bodies outside the World Bank.

Earlier, the World Bank said it will release USD 7.9 mn in emergency funds to Egypt to help it fight the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.