Three Arab countries – Egypt, Algeria, and Morocco – are among the top ten largest economies in Africa in 2024, according to data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Egypt ranked third with an expected GDP of US$358 billion this year, while Algeria came in fourth with an expected GDP of $239 billion.
The IMF expects Morocco’s GDP to reach $157 billion this year, placing it sixth among Africa’s largest economies.
South Africa remains the continent’s largest economy, with an expected GDP of $401 billion in 2024.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced earlier in March that Egypt signed an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to increase the value of the country’s funding from three billion to eight billion dollars.
An agreement was also settled with IMF experts regarding the first and second reviews under the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF), following efforts by the government that included a sharp devaluation of the currency and an increase in interest rates.
Largest deal of its kind
Egypt earlier in February announced the largest major investment deal in partnership with the UAE, dubbed “Egypt and UAE, a Partnership for the Development of Ras al-Hikma.”
Prime Minister Madbouly said that the project includes establishing hotels, entertainment projects, tourist resorts, a financial and business district, and an international airport.
This project will be the largest of its kind, he added, as it seeks to develop a city with an area of 170 million square meters or more than 40,600 acres.
Egyptian Cabinet spokesperson Mohamed al-Hommosany assured that the state is fully committed to compensating the people of the Ras al-Hikma region, adding that not a single citizen will be harmed by this project.
During a phone interview with CBC satellite channel in late February, Hommosany said that the Ras al-Hikma urban development project will witness investments of no less than US$150 billion, and provide many job opportunities.
This new city is expected to attract at least eight million tourists, he added, pointing out that the project will contribute to the development of the North Coast region.
