The IMF will consolidate evaluations of Egypt’s $8 billion credit scheme
The International Monetary Fund announced Thursday that it would combine the fifth and sixth evaluations of Egypt’s $8 billion support program this fall in order to allow the government additional time to accomplish important goals of its program for economic reform.
Julie Kozack, a spokesperson for the IMF, stated at a routine briefing that the organization’s employees were collaborating with Egyptian authorities to finalize important policy measures, specifically regarding the role of the state in politics.
Reuters originally reported on Tuesday that a decision to combine the reviews might postpone a new funding release to Egypt by six months. Kozack stated that it was too soon to talk about how much money would be expected to be paid out for the combined reviews.
The fourth assessment of the program was approved by the International Monetary Fund in March, allowing a $1.2 billion transfer, bringing the total to almost $3.5 billion.
March 2024 saw the signing of the 46-month facility after over a year of severe shortages of foreign currency and inflation, which peaked in September 2023 at 38%.
Kozack described a May 6–18 meeting between an IMF delegation and Egyptian authorities in Cairo as “productive” talks.
“Egypt continues to make progress under its macroeconomic reform program, and we can say that there’s been notable improvements in inflation and in the level of foreign exchange reserves, which have increased,” she told the media.
In order to protect macroeconomic stability and increase resilience, she said Egypt needed to strengthen its reforms, lessen the role of the state in the economy, and enhance the business climate.
According to her, “key priorities are advancing the state ownership policy and asset diversification program in sectors where the state has committed to withdraw,” since these actions are essential to empowering the private sector to propel more robust and sustainable growth.
Kozack stated that “more time is needed to finalize the key policy measures, particularly related to the state’s role in the economy,” based on staff interactions with authorities.
