Minister of Finance Mohamed Ma’eit Thursday described improvements in economic indicators in the first half of fiscal year 2020-2021 as “unprecedented”.
Such improvements have been achieved thanks to economic reforms and government monetary policy of recent years, the minister said.
The economy still recorded positive growth in the same period, while unemployment and inflation fell as foreign currency reserves increased, the minister added.
The general budget had an initial surplus of LE14 billion ($903 million), equivalent to 2 percent of GDP, for the third year running, Ma’eit said.
This surplus helped bring the budget deficit down to 3.6 percent in first six months of FY 2020-2021, compared to 4.1 percent in the same period in the previous year, Ma’eit added.
Improving financial and economic indicators came as the ministry catered to the needs of the national response to Covid-19 pandemic as well as education and health, which provided the necessary funding for the government’s investment plan and the requirements of all state institutions, he explained.
We also paid duty on exports and offered the necessary backing to the industrial sector, he said.
Overall, state revenue rose 16 percent in the first half of FY 2020-2021 to LE453 billion pounds ($29.2 billion) — 7 percent of GDP, the minister said, adding that revenues included LE334 billion ($21.5 billion) from taxation.
Tax revenues grew by 9.9 percent in the same period while non-tax revenues amounted to LE118 billion ($7.6 billion), which show that the economy is quickly recovering from the effects of the pandemic, Ma’eit said.
The ministry would move ahead with reforms, including by meeting the digital demand and increasing investments in labour-intensive and green-oriented sectors.
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