Egypt has started talks with the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) for support for several infrastructure and development projects across the country.

On the sidelines of the IMF’s and World Bank’s annual meetings in Washington, Egypt’s Minister of Finance Amr el-Garhy and Minister of International Cooperation Sahar Nasr met with AIIB representatives to discuss cooperation opportunities, according to a cabinet statement.

Cairo has paid the first tranche of its total $650m commitment to AIIB, the two Egyptian ministers told reporters in a press briefing following the meeting with the bank on 7 October.

AIIB was established at the end of 2015 with 57 member countries, according to the bank’s website.

The lender’s capital is understood to be $100bn.

Earlier this month, Cairo confirmed it is set to sign a financing agreement with the World Bank worth $500m.

The agreement was also signed at the annual meeting held in Washington last week. The funds are set to be earmarked for the Upper Egypt Local Development Programme.

The Upper Egypt Local Development Programme is an infrastructure development initiative aimed at supporting the Qena and Sohag governorates in southern Egypt.