Nasr looks to lock in USD 1.5 bn World Bank loan for Sinai, social housing by year’s end: Investment and International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr will meet with World Bank officials on the sidelines of the IMF and WB fall meetings this week to finalize agreements that will see the bank provide loans worth a combined USD 1.5 bn, a ministry source tells Al Shorouk. USD 1 bn will be allocated to support Sinai development efforts and a separate USD 500 mn package will be used for the second phase of the government’s social housing projects, before the year is out. Talks over the Sinai development package have been ongoing since April, while Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly had put in a request for the social housing funding in July.