Egypt's economic situation receives international praise: Planning Ministry

The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development issued a report containing the opinions of several international reports on the performance of the Egyptian economy in light of the consequences of the Covid-19 virus, as part of the ministry's keenness to follow up the views of international institutions on the economic performance of Egypt.


Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, explained that the ministry is keen to follow up the views of various economic institutions around the world on the performance of the Egyptian economy, especially in light of the conditions that the world is currently facing with the Coronavirus.

El-Said referred to the opinion of the Institute of International Finance (IIF), which made it clear that Egypt has adapted well to the consequences of the Coronavirus, with the support of an effective and timely response from the public health sector, and the implementation of a package of financial and monetary measures.


Dr. Hala El-Said also reviewed the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) praise of the policies of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and the Egyptian government.

 "IMF indicated in its report that Egypt has taken good steps that include expanding the provision of social support, providing credit to companies, which is a good policy of the central bank and the role of financial authorities in setting up systems to protect against bankruptcy and job loss," El-Said explained.




The IIF report indicated that Egypt is the only country in the Middle East and North Africa region that avoids recession in 2020.

The institute expects that growth will be supported by appropriate fiscal and monetary policies, and progress in reforms before the pandemic.

It (The Report) also believes that partial closures and other restrictions may have a less specific economic impact during the second half of the current fiscal year, with consumers and companies finding ways to adapt and benefit from the great development in digital transformation and financial technology.


The Institute's report added that the monetary policy stance is appropriate and that there is room for further monetary easing based on the absence of inflationary pressures, and its continued alignment with the central bank's targets between 5 and 9% by the end of the fourth quarter of 2022, in addition to the growth of credit to the economy 21% by the end of last December And that the banking sector has been well prepared to face the shock of Coronavirus.

Regarding the International Finance Institute's expectations for the Egyptian economy indicators, the institute expected the real growth of the economy to reach 4.7% in 2022, to rise to 5.1% in 2024.

The report also referred to the authorities' expansion of their social protection program, with a focus on addressing the health emergency and supporting the most vulnerable groups by expanding the cash support program "Takaful and Dignity", reducing electricity tariffs for the industrial and tourism sectors, and postponing taxes on capital gains until further notice.

In its report, the institute praised the development in the field of digital transformation, as it may lead to improved competitiveness and increased productivity of labor and capital, as the pandemic raised the demand for electronic commerce.


The report highlighted that Egypt has made progress in the field of communications and information technology by injecting large investments in rebuilding capacities, training programs, digital services, and infrastructure challenges.






According to the IMF report, it included advice to the Egyptian government to maintain this support while setting priorities, as economic reforms made Egypt stronger in the face of the Corona crisis, and the Fund confirmed that it will continue with the Egyptian government in bearing crises in the future.