The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development has published the findings from several international reports on Egypt’s economic performance.
The ministry’s publication reflects the eagerness to learn how international institutions view this country’s economic performance of Egypt in consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ministry of Planning and Economic Development Hala el-Saeed referred to the outlook by the Institute of International Finance (IIF).
The IIF said Egypt has adapted well to the conditions imposed by the coronavirus as a result of an effective and timely response from the public health sector and the implementation of a package of financial and monetary measures.
The IIF report indicated that Egypt is the only country in the Middle East and North Africa region that avoided recession in 2020.
The institute expects that growth will be supported by appropriate fiscal and monetary policies, as well as progress in economic reforms that were enacted before the pandemic.
Partial closures and other restrictions may have less impact on the economy during the second half of the current fiscal year while consumers and companies adapt to and benefit from the development in digitisation and technology related to finance, the report said.
Monetary policy stance is appropriate and that there is room for further monetary easing based on the absence of inflationary pressures, and its continued alignment with the central bank’s targets between 5 and 9 percent by the end of the fourth quarter of 2022, the IIF said.
As for IIF forecasts, the institute expects the real growth of the economy to reach 4.7 percent in 2022 and rise further to 5.1 percent in 2024.
The institute hailed the development in digitisation, which may lead to improved competitiveness and increased productivity of labour and capital, since the pandemic raised demand for e-commerce.
The report highlighted that Egypt has made progress in communications and information technology by injecting large investments in rebuilding capacities, training programmes, digital services, and infrastructure challenges.
The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) hailed of the policies of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and the Egyptian government.
“The IMF said Egypt has taken proper steps, such as expand social support and extend credit to companies, for which the CBE deserves praise,” el-Saeed said.
“The fund also praised financial authorities for creating systems to protect against bankruptcy and job loss,” el-Saeed added.
Economic reforms have made Egypt stronger in the face of the Covid-19 crisis, the IMF said, adding that it would continue with the Egyptian government to weather crises in the future.
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