Egypt’s FY20 budget at $166.5mn in savings used to boost investments -minister

The savings of the financial year 2019/2020 budget recorded 2.7 billion Egyptian pounds ($166.5 million) that were used in boosting investments and meeting the urgent needs of a number of state bodies, said  Minister of Planning Hala El-Said on Monday.

El-Said said bodies that have been boosted by these extra funds include the education ministry with 200 million pounds, university hospitals with 200 million pounds, the health ministry with 250 million pounds, and Al-Azhar with 50 million pounds.

The transport ministry was also supported with 200 million pounds, Cairo governorate with 220 million pounds, and the higher education ministry with 700 million pounds, she added.

She pointed out that a decree has been issued to open an additional line of credit of 10 million pounds within the financial year 2019/2020 budget for buying non-fiscal assets and investments in order to lure economic activity amid the COVID-19 crisis.

El-Said added that the line of credit also targets increasing operation rates directly through paying companies and contractors’ dues, increasing cash liquidity which helps in paying workers’ salaries.

Under this additional line of credit, 4 billion pounds were allocated for the higher education ministry, 1 billion pounds for the youth and sports ministry, 1.8 billion pounds for Cairo governorate, and 2.5 billion pounds for the housing ministry.

The second half of the financial year 2019/2020 budget saw heavy pressure due to the COVID-19 crisis, which required the rearrangement of spending, investment, and allocation priorities. However, the financial year 2019/2020 budget did experience solid macroeconomic signs despite the crisis.

Egypt has seen real economic growth that hit 5 percent during the third quarter of the fiscal year, while the targeted real economic growth before the COVID-19 crisis was projected to reach 5.9 percent, according to the planning ministry.