EU disburses €1.5 bln to Egypt under macro-financial programme
The European Union has disbursed €1.5 billion ($1.72 billion) to Egypt under its Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) programme after the country met agreed economic reform and policy commitments, the European Commission said on Wednesday.
The payment is the second of three planned instalments under the EU’s €4 billion macro-financial assistance programme, adopted in June 2025 as part of the bloc’s broader support for Egypt’s economic reform agenda.
“The disbursement follows the European Commission’s positive assessment that Egypt has successfully met the conditions required for the release of the second tranche,” the EU said in a statement.
“These include the implementation of agreed economic policy reforms, continued progress under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme, and the fulfilment of the political requirements set out in the Memorandum of Understanding between the European Union and Egypt.”
The programme supports reforms aimed at strengthening macroeconomic resilience, improving public financial management, enhancing the business and investment climate, promoting competition, reforming state-owned enterprises, and advancing Egypt’s green transition, including through reforms in water governance, energy efficiency, and electricity markets.
“The Macro-Financial Assistance programme forms a central pillar of the EU-Egypt Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership, reflecting the European Union’s recognition of Egypt as a strategic partner and an essential pillar of stability in the Mediterranean and the wider Middle East and North Africa region,” EU Ambassador to Egypt Angelina Eichhorst said in a statement.
The latest payment follows a €1 billion short-term macro-financial assistance package disbursed in December 2024 and the first €1 billion instalment under the current programme, released in January 2026.
The EU has now provided Egypt with €3.5 billion in macro-financial assistance, with a final €1.5 billion instalment to be released once the remaining agreed conditions are met.
The programme forms part of the EU-Egypt Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership signed in March 2024 by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. Under the partnership, the European Union pledged a €7.4 billion financial package for Egypt for 2024–2027, including grants, loans, and guarantees to support economic resilience, investment, trade, the green transition, migration cooperation, and human development.
Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English