President-elect Mohamed Morsy envisages transforming Egypt’s rentier-based economy to a value-added economy, Yasser Ali al-Afdal, Morsy’s temporary official spokesperson, said on Wednesday.
Last year, Egypt was hoping to acquire more than US$10 billion in aid to help rebuild its diminishing foreign exchange reserves and plug its budget deficit. To date, the country has received no more than roughly half that amount, and talks on a US$3.2 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund have been inconclusive.
Afdal said that studies regarding Morsy’s proposed economic shift were underway and that they would be implemented immediately.
Tourism will play a major role in Morsy’s program, Afdal said, and all actions taken during the first 100 days of the president-elect’s program would benefit Egypt’s economy and tourism, he continued.
Afdal went on to state that tourism is one of Morsy’s major concerns, and that the growth of the tourism industry will not be achieved without stability and an atmosphere that encourages tourists to come to Egypt.
Guarantees would be provided to investors and businessmen to encourage them to invest in Egypt, Afdal said. He added that Morsy would meet with a number of businessmen so that they could share with him their ideas and proposals for the advancement of Egypt’s economy.
He said there would be no discrimination in terms of foreign investors, and that the state would welcome all investments from abroad within determined framework and plans.
