Egyptian Finance Minister Mohamed Maait assured that the state’s latest program with the International Monetary Fund does not include any additional burdens on citizens, but rather aims to preserve the gains of the economic reform program, and to sustain positive job-rich growth rates.
The program aims to maintain a declining path of the deficit and debt rates of the GDP, he explained in a statement, by moving forward with providing greater opportunities for the private sector in the development process, in a way that leads to enhancing its contributions to economic activity.
Maait added that the government decided to start talks with IMF officials to consult on a new program to maintain economic and financial stability and promote comprehensive structural reforms.
The program also aims to enhance the ability of the Egyptian economy to withstand external shocks, and the possible repercussions in the event of the continuation of the conflict in Ukraine, he said.
This will result in doubling global pressures on the economies of countries, the intensification of the inflationary wave, and the associated disruption in supply chains.
Maait stressed that the government is closely following the repercussions of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis on global prices and supply chains, which coincide with a significant and accelerating rise in interest rates globally.
He pointed out that the successive certificates of confidence that the Egyptian economy has received from international financing and rating institutions confirm that Egypt is on the right path, and that its economy is able to achieve the goals even with this crisis and the crushing global shock, just as it was able to contain the repercussions of coronavirus pandemic.
There is a presidential mandate to maintain the state’s safe economic path and preserve the gains of economic reform, he explained, allowing the government to be able to achieve the goals and meet the development needs of citizens, expand the umbrella of social protection and absorb the largest possible amount of global shocks.
He said that the global economic environment is witnessing successive changes that cast a shadow over the economies of various countries, especially emerging countries, and in light of this, the Egyptian government is keen to take all necessary measures and policies to ensure macroeconomic stability.
