Egypt’s negotiations with IMF in its advanced stages, deputy finance minister Kouchouk

Cairo – October 18, 2023: Egypt and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are in the advanced stages of negotiations, with a potential announcement for the $3 billion loan’s reviews coming soon, revealed Ahmed Kouchouk, Deputy Minister of Finance for Financial Policies.

Minister of Finance, Mohamed Maait, was quoted earlier this week as saying that Egypt believes the IMF will announce the new dates for the reviews before the end of October.

The IMF has delayed two separate reviews for Egypt’s $3 billion Extended Fund Facility since March, citing concerns over the implementation of certain conditions laid out by the fund.

Successfully passing the reviews would open up $700 million in delayed tranches.

IMF’s Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva praised Egypt’s progress on multiple levels including privatization and public finance last week, while IMF director for the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia, Jihad Azour confirmed that the IMF would be combining the two postponed reviews. Azour added that “when we get there, it means that strong progress has been achieved”.

Bloomberg recently reported, citing sources, that Egypt is discussing a potential additional $2 billion to the loan.

Regarding the recent issuance of Panda Bonds, the deputy minister stated that expected proceeds will be directed to green investments. On Monday, Egypt successfully issued panda bonds worth 3.5 billion yuan (approx. $500 million).