Saudi Arabia and France signed on Tuesday a Memorandum of Understanding on jointly funding development projects in Africa. Projects stand to cost 200 million euros and will be funded by both the Saudi Fund for Development and the French Development Agency. The MoU deals with Riyadh and Paris financing the projects in African countries located in the Western Sahel region. The memo was signed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Fund for Development Ahmed Al-Khatib, and the French side by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Development Jean-Pierre Ladrian and the Executive Director of the French Development Agency Remy Rio. The signing ceremony coincided with the visit by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, to France. Khatib said that Saudi Arabia and France, branded as leaders in the development sector, will work together to support the development of the west coast. The support will be in the form of providing assistance for establishing rudimentary infrastructure. Lives of many people who have been affected by conflicts, environmental crises and economic difficulties will see improvement. For his part, Rio said that the signing of the MoU with the Kingdom comes in recognition of the importance of bolstering the strategic partnership between the two countries in their effort to achieve goals of sustainable development. The Saudi-France strategic partnership encompasses goals concerning climate and environment change, social development and stimulating private and public investments to promote long-term sustainability.