Al-Mashat, IMF mission chief discuss Egypt's structural reform program

Updated 5/14/2025 11:27:00 AM

Arab Finance: Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, discussed the national structural reform program with Ivanna Vladkova Hollar, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission Chief for Egypt, as per a statement.

The meeting also touched upon macroeconomic indicators and external financial resources to bridge the financing gap.

Al-Mashat noted that the Egyptian economy regained momentum in economic growth since the implementation of economic reform measures in March 2024.

She noted that the Egyptian economy faced significant challenges before this period. However, the state witnessed economic growth to 2.4% in the fourth quarter (Q4) of fiscal year 2023/2024, followed by 3.5% and 4.3% in Q1 and Q2 of FY 2024/25.

Non-petroleum manufacturing sector led growth rates, along with segments of the information and communications technology (ICT), tourism, transport, and storage.

This was despite the negative impact of geopolitical tensions on Suez Canal activity, which registered a significant decline over the recent period.

Al-Mashat addressed cooperation with international development partners to mobilize budget support funding and implement comprehensive structural reforms in the Egyptian economy.

She reflected on the Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) mechanism and the budget support of €4 billion with the European Union (EU), aimed at boosting macroeconomic stability, enhancing the investment environment, and driving the transition to a green economy.

The private sector also receives a significant portion of this funding through direct and indirect investments and lines of credit, which improve growth and employment efforts, according to Al-Mashat.

The minister noted that concessional financing to the private sector exceeded nearly $14.5 billion over the past five years.

She also reviewed the implementation of the Nexus of Water, Food, and Energy (NWFE) program, particularly in the energy sector, which has attracted $3.9 billion concessional financing to the private sector in two years. The financing was allocated to implement renewable energy projects with a capacity of 4.2 gigawatts (GW).

Meanwhile, the ministry seeks to raise funding to $10 billion to implement around 10 GW of renewable energy capacity, supporting Egypt's renewable energy capacity to 42% by 2030.