IMF Sets Out Egypt Deal Terms: Much Done, Much Still To Do

3 May 2024 Issue: 67 / 18 By: James Cockayne

The IMF praises Egypt for currency liberalization. But on privatizations, boosting the private sector’s economic role and, above all, subsidy reform, there remains much to do.

A freshly released IMF report on Egypt sets out the details of discussions prior to the landmark $8bn bailout agreed on 6 March (MEES, 8 March), as well as the back-and-forth with Egyptian authorities before the Washington-based multilateral officially signed off on the deal on 29 March (MEES, 5 April).

The report, released on 26 April, details the areas where Egypt is deemed to have met the conditions of the previous late-2022 IMF deal (MEES, 23 December 2022) which subsequently fell apart in 2023 amid Egyptian backsliding, and the areas where Egypt ‘must do better’. The report includes not only the IMF’s initial findings prior to the provisional 6 March deal, but also a 19 March document including Egyptian officials’ responses with key commitments, and the IMF’s updated 27 March position which immediately preceded its final sign-off on the Egypt deal. (CONTINUED - 2781 WORDS)