The Egyptian Finance Minister, Mohamed Maait, indicated that "Egypt aims to reach a budget deficit during the next fiscal year 2022-2023 to about 6.1 percent of GDP, down from an estimate for the current fiscal year at 6.2 percent, despite the increase in spending."
Egypt raised its expectations for the expenditure item in the draft budget next year, which was presented to the House of Representatives, by 15 percent, to 2.070 trillion pounds (112 billion dollars), an increase of 12.7 percent over the current year. Against expected revenues of 1.517 trillion pounds, an increase of 11.1 percent, and an expected deficit of 558 billion pounds, up from 487.7 billion pounds, as a result of the successive financial crises that the country is facing as a result of the war in Ukraine and the repercussions of the Corona epidemic.
Minister Maait explained, during his speech to the parliament, that "the global crisis led to a rise in energy and food prices, and that the government was able to face severe and simultaneous shocks due to the strength of the national economy." He explained that "the budget was prepared in light of enormous challenges and pressures on the country's economy during the international turmoil that led to an increase in inflation." Noting that "interest payments on government debt will rise to 690.15 billion pounds in 2022-2023, equivalent to 45.4 percent of total revenues from 579.58 billion pounds this year."
Source (Al-Sharq Al-Awsat Newspaper, Edited)
