Egypt Participation of Private Sector in Development is Must

Finance Minister Momtaz el-Saeed said on 17/9/2012 that the private sector is the cornerstone of economic growth in Egypt as the state aims to increase investments to 276 billion pounds in the current fiscal year in order to achieve a 4.5 % percent growth. Speaking at a conference on funding infrastructure projects and private sector participation in the Middle East, the minister said that the state wants to increase the growth rate within the upcoming three years to reach 7.5 % in a bid to provide roughly 750,000 jobs annually.

Public investments currently stand at 106 billion pounds, he noted, adding that the private sector, along with the government's participation, is expected to pump 170 billions in investments. As many as 15 projects are ready to be implemented by both the private and public sectors, the minister said, adding that these projects were reviewed by several investment delegations, who visited Egypt. Cooperating with the private sector achieves growth and creates jobs to curb the rising unemployment rate, el-Saeed said. This cooperation helps the state to reduce budget deficit, he said, affirming that partnership projects with the private sector will not affect subsidy in any way.

The government is currently considering imposing a one piaster tax on every minute of cell phone call, but a decision has not been reached yet, el-Saeed said. In the last fiscal year, the budget deficit reached 170 billion pounds, constituting 11% of the gross domestic product (GDP), he noted. Investment Minister Osama Saleh, for his part, said that the loans from friendly countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, along with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will revive the battered Egyptian economy.