Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi called for maintaining the stability of the monetary sector to make state authorities more capable of meeting various challenges.
President Sisi’s remarks came during his meeting on Saturday with Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli and Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Governor Tarek Amer.
The meeting dwelt on the work the banking sector has been doing to back economic activities and national economic development plans.
CBE Governor Amer briefed the president about the national economic situation, almost a year and a half after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Presidency Spokesman Ambassador Bassam Radi said.
“The national economy demonstrated coherence and resilience in the face of the pandemic,” the CBE governor said.
He added that this resilience was manifest in the stability of banking institutions during the pandemic.
He noted that CBE launched several initiatives to alleviate the burdens induced by the pandemic on citizens and private sector companies.
Governor Amer noted that these initiatives included a postponement of loan maturities for six months and investment certificates with high interest rates.
He updated the president about progress on the construction of the new printing and minting facility of the CBE in coordination with the Secured Documents Centre.
“The facility will print and mint money, using advanced raw materials and in line with the latest international standards,” Governor Amer said.
The CBE governor also showed the president samples of the new banknotes that will be released as of early November.
He said the CBE succeeded in managing foreign currency reserves during the pandemic, noting that the reserves rose to $40.5 billion, from $37 billion.
“This reflects the return by the national economy to its strong performance in a record time in accordance with the government’s crisis management plan,” Governor Amer said. He pointed to the success of the second programme for co-operation with the International Monetary Fund.
The IMF, he said, praised the Egyptian government’s performance, especially its balanced and transparent economic management.
The president instructed the prime minister and the CBE governor, meanwhile, to keep pushing the banking sector to play a more active role, Ambassador Radi said.
He added that the president also asked them to encourage the sector to offer more services to ordinary people.
“The president also called for maintaining the stability of the monetary sector to make state authorities more capable of meeting various challenges,” the spokesman said.
He added that the president also underscored the importance of role the CBE plays in supporting different development initiatives.
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