Dr. Mohamed Maait, the Minister of Finance, confirmed that Egypt achieved a primary surplus in the fiscal year 2023-2024, amounting to 3% of GDP, reaching 416 billion pounds. This was accompanied by an annual growth rate exceeding 8 and a half times. Non-tax revenues saw a significant increase of 123%, while tax revenues surpassed one trillion pounds with a growth rate of 41%. The expansion of business mechanization aimed at broadening the tax base and formalizing the informal economy without imposing new burdens on citizens or investors.
Despite global and regional crises, the total deficit stabilized at 5.4%. Investments funded by the state’s public treasury decreased by 19% to create more opportunities for the private sector. Egypt aims to reduce the debt service bill to 30% of public expenditures in the medium term and bring the debt rate down to 80% by June 2027. Additionally, the goal is to reduce the debt portfolio’s lifespan to 3.3 years by June 2024 to alleviate the general budget’s financing needs.
The Ministry’s Investor Relations Unit engages in open dialogue with around 2,000 investment institutions worldwide throughout the year. They issue monthly reports on economic performance indicators, debt, deficit, and primary surplus rates to provide accurate data to foreign investors on Egypt’s economic situation.