Today, Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister, chaired the meeting of the Coordination Council for Fiscal and Monetary Policies at the government headquarters in New Alamein City, in the presence of Hassan Abdullah, Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt, Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation, Ahmed Kouchouk, Minister of Finance, Hassan Al-Khatib, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, Dr. Ashraf Al-Araby, experts, Yasser Sobhi, Deputy Minister of Finance for Fiscal Policies, Rami Abu Al-Naja, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Tarek El-Khouly, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Mohamed El-Etreby, experts, Dr. Hussein Issa, experts, and officials from the relevant ministries and authorities.
Mohamed El-Homsany, the official spokesperson for the Cabinet, said that during the meeting, the commitment to a flexible exchange rate system was emphasized, as was the continuation of the government's offering program and the implementation of the provisions of the "State Ownership Policy" document, which will allow for the provision of additional resources to reduce the debt of budget agencies. At the same time, the continued efforts and role of the Egyptian Competition Authority were emphasized to ensure the protection of competitiveness.
He added that it was noted that the government was successfully implementing its plan to repay its foreign partners in the petroleum sector according to the specified timetable.
Al-Homsi explained that the meeting also reviewed the most important policies and measures adopted within the framework of the National Structural Reform Program, which is the primary tool the state relies on to translate economic goals into tangible reality. It consists of three axes: enhancing macroeconomic stability, increasing economic competitiveness and improving the business environment, and supporting the green transition.
He pointed out that this comes within the framework of the state's strategic direction to accelerate the pace of structural reform. For the first time, the Ministry of Planning has set a clear timeframe for all policies and measures included in the National Economic Development Narrative, with implementation to be monitored and progress evaluated on a quarterly basis. In this context, the Ministry has developed an integrated platform to track the implementation of approved policies and measures. This platform constitutes a pillar for supporting good governance.
He continued: The meeting also reviewed the outcomes of the Fourth United Nations International Conference on Financing for Development in Seville, Spain, and Egypt's most prominent messages at the conference, which are: making room for the private sector and enhancing foreign investments in developing countries, with the importance of improving governance in international financial institutions and increasing allocations of special drawing rights to developing countries, in addition to strengthening the role of the United Nations in global economic activities, as well as the importance of updating the foundations for calculating debt sustainability analyses, as well as enhancing South-South and triangular cooperation, while adopting a unified concept of global public goods, in addition to using innovative financing mechanisms to support small and medium-sized enterprises and entrepreneurship.
Al-Homsi said that the meeting also reviewed the overall investment structure for fiscal year 2025/2026, affirming the continuation of efforts to achieve public investment governance targets during this year, in parallel with the expansion of private sector activity.
Al-Homsi added that the meeting reviewed the external debt situation during the period from March 2024 to March 2025, highlighting the structure of the external debt during this period, the evolution of the external debt as a percentage of the gross domestic product, and confirming that the external debt ratio remains at safe levels.
He explained that the meeting also discussed a plan to cover financial needs and obligations for the current fiscal year 2025-2026, noting that there is a comprehensive plan with specific timings and dates to cover our needs and obligations from dollar resources.
Al-Homsi said that during the meeting, it was noted that Egyptian bonds in international markets are performing well, as returns on Egyptian bonds have declined and risk insurance rates have decreased as a result of the stability witnessed by the Egyptian economy and the interest of investors and institutions. on Egyptian bonds.
