AGL 38.48 Decreased By ▼ -0.08 (-0.21%)
AIRLINK 203.02 Decreased By ▼ -4.75 (-2.29%)
BOP 10.17 Increased By ▲ 0.11 (1.09%)
CNERGY 6.54 Decreased By ▼ -0.54 (-7.63%)
DCL 9.58 Decreased By ▼ -0.41 (-4.1%)
DFML 40.02 Decreased By ▼ -1.12 (-2.72%)
DGKC 98.08 Decreased By ▼ -5.38 (-5.2%)
FCCL 34.96 Decreased By ▼ -1.39 (-3.82%)
FFBL 86.43 Decreased By ▼ -5.16 (-5.63%)
FFL 13.90 Decreased By ▼ -0.70 (-4.79%)
HUBC 131.57 Decreased By ▼ -7.86 (-5.64%)
HUMNL 14.02 Decreased By ▼ -0.08 (-0.57%)
KEL 5.61 Decreased By ▼ -0.36 (-6.03%)
KOSM 7.27 Decreased By ▼ -0.59 (-7.51%)
MLCF 45.59 Decreased By ▼ -1.69 (-3.57%)
NBP 66.38 Decreased By ▼ -7.38 (-10.01%)
OGDC 220.76 Decreased By ▼ -1.90 (-0.85%)
PAEL 38.48 Increased By ▲ 0.37 (0.97%)
PIBTL 8.91 Decreased By ▼ -0.36 (-3.88%)
PPL 197.88 Decreased By ▼ -7.97 (-3.87%)
PRL 39.03 Decreased By ▼ -0.82 (-2.06%)
PTC 25.47 Decreased By ▼ -1.15 (-4.32%)
SEARL 103.05 Decreased By ▼ -7.19 (-6.52%)
TELE 9.02 Decreased By ▼ -0.21 (-2.28%)
TOMCL 36.41 Decreased By ▼ -1.80 (-4.71%)
TPLP 13.75 Decreased By ▼ -0.02 (-0.15%)
TREET 25.12 Decreased By ▼ -1.33 (-5.03%)
TRG 58.04 Decreased By ▼ -2.50 (-4.13%)
UNITY 33.67 Decreased By ▼ -0.47 (-1.38%)
WTL 1.71 Decreased By ▼ -0.17 (-9.04%)
BR100 11,890 Decreased By -408.8 (-3.32%)
BR30 37,357 Decreased By -1520.9 (-3.91%)
KSE100 111,070 Decreased By -3790.4 (-3.3%)
KSE30 34,909 Decreased By -1287 (-3.56%)

CAIRO: Egypt will push development financing as a way to expand private sector engagement, leveraging support obtained during the coronavirus pandemic, with a focus on green projects and sustainable growth, the international cooperation minister said.

The government wants the private sector to play a bigger role, though non-oil private investment and private-sector activity has lagged, and stake sales in state firms have been delayed by market downturns and the pandemic.

State-led economic activity has helped cushion the economic impact of COVID-19.

Egypt is well placed to tap cheap, long-term development financing from lenders like the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the European Investment Bank (EIB), which can bolster the private sector while raising governance and environmental standards, International Cooperation Minister Rania al-Mashat told Reuters.

“As we continue to push the frontiers with a green recovery, with an energy strategy that moves into renewables even more forcefully, there are venues, very attractive venues, for such financing, not just for government projects but also for private sector projects.

“And we have announced that 2021 for us is the year of more private sector engagement.”

Egypt has a development finance portfolio of nearly $25 billion, attracting $9.9 billion in 2020, a third of which was directed to the private sector, Mashat said. Development financing represents about 10% of public debt and 25% of external debt, she added.

Much of the funding has gone to areas such as transport, infrastructure, water and renewable energy.

Egypt implemented major reforms from 2016 under a three-year IMF loan programme, devaluing the currency, cutting most energy subsidies and imposing a value-added tax.

The reforms were praised for stabilising the economy, but critics say many poorer Egyptians have not felt the benefits and have questioned the prospects for job-creating growth.

In June 2020, Egypt agreed to a $5.2 billion standby loan with the IMF that aims to encourage private sector engagement and structural reform.

“One of the goals or principles of this programme is private sector engagement and structural reforms that actually try and address some of the challenges or impediments so that we pave the way for more growth and more employment,” Mashat said.

Comments

Comments are closed.