Egypt strives to lower public debt ratio to 80pc by mid-2027: minister

Finance Minister Mohamed Maait has announced the commencement of a pivotal phase in Egypt’s development and construction journey under President Abdel Fattah AlSisi. The goal is to reinforce the New Republic’s framework, aligning with the Egyptian populace’s aspirations and their pursuit of a respectable existence.

The strategy is designed to serve all citizens impartially, with explicit, well-defined priorities that sketch out the national action plan for the forthcoming era.

This approach aims to bolster stability, economic and social advancement, and the judicious employment of human capital via all-encompassing, coordinated structural reform strategies.

These strategies are set to instigate fiscal discipline, thereby freeing up fiscal capacity to augment social investments, focusing on pivotal groups and the most deprived regions, particularly amidst the global economic turmoil.

During the introduction of the Procedural Guide for Gender-Responsive Budgeting aimed at fostering Equal Opportunities and Gender Equality, Maait highlighted that Egypt’s recent economic reforms are pivotal to securing stability and fostering economic growth.

These reforms are integrated into the overarching state budget, which harbours ambitious objectives such as achieving a primary surplus of 3.5% of GDP, curtailing the overall deficit to 6% over the medium term, and diminishing the debt ratio to 80% by June 2027.

A critical aspect of these reforms is the establishment of an upper limit on the government’s debt across all economic, service, administrative, and local sectors, a threshold that can only be surpassed during national crises or urgent situations with consent from the President, the Cabinet, and the House of Representatives.

The reforms also entail a more than 30% increase in funding for healthcare and education, alongside augmented allocations for support and social protection to mitigate the inflationary pressures on the citizenry.

The Finance Minister underscored the growing focus of the political leadership on nurturing, supporting, and empowering women, children, individuals with disabilities, the youth, and seniors.

This commitment has significantly contributed to bridging gender disparities, promoting equal opportunities and gender equality, and furthering social equity in a more enduring manner. It also fosters a culture of constructive engagement in the nation-building process, underscoring the significance of recent legislative changes to the Unified General Budget Law.

These amendments reinforce the budget’s unity and inclusivity across all public economic, service, administrative bodies, and local authorities. They also enhance the efficacy of public expenditure and bolster targeted initiatives aimed at improving the livelihoods of citizens across various social, age, and geographic demographics, thereby impacting poverty reduction and laying the groundwork for holistic and enduring development.

Maait elucidated that the recent modifications to the Unified General Budget Law reiterate the government’s pledge to incrementally adopt the “Program and Performance” budgeting model over six years. This will be achieved by refining functional and administrative frameworks and oversight mechanisms, ensuring the optimal use of state assets, and fulfilling the objectives of the national economic and social development blueprint, as well as the country’s strategic goals.

He affirmed that gender-responsive budgeting is a cornerstone of the “Program and Performance” budget, resonating with Egypt’s Vision 2030. It ensures the precise execution of governmental programs and initiatives through equitable and more focused methods to lessen gender disparities.