Finance, Tourism Ministries launch EGP 50B initiative to boost tourism sector

Updated 10/31/2024 12:51:00 PM

Arab Finance: The Egyptian Ministers of Finance and Tourism and Antiquities unveiled an initiative to bolster the tourism sector with EGP 50 billion in financing facilities, aiming to increase hotel room capacity in high-priority areas such as Luxor, Aswan, Greater Cairo, the Red Sea, and South Sinai, as per a statement.

Finance Minister Ahmed Kochouk detailed that the initiative includes a government-backed return rate for financing provided to tourism companies, available over five years from the initial disbursement.

To qualify, companies in the tourism sector must sell 40% of their foreign currency revenue to the lending banks.

Kochouk underscored that this initiative aligns with Egypt’s broader economic goals to stimulate growth and liquidity in the private sector, reinforcing the government’s support for tourism as a critical pillar of the economy.

Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy emphasized the initiative's role in attracting investments, particularly for hotel development, to meet anticipated increases in tourism demand. Applications will be open for a year, with a financing cap of EGP 1 billion for individual clients and EGP 2 billion for related parties.

Qualified companies will benefit from a reduced interest rate of 12%, with a maximum financing withdrawal period of 16 months, ending in June 2026.

Companies are also granted six months post-withdrawal to secure final or provisional operating licenses.

So far, 96 applications have been submitted under the initiative, each meeting the necessary criteria, marking a promising start for the sector's expansion and modernization.