Egypt Announces Initiative worth EGP 150 Bln to Support Industry, Agriculture

PM Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister affirmed that the government will continue to support and encourage the productive sectors and enhance local production by focusing on priority sectors, especially the industrial and agricultural sectors to increase capabilities to face the repercussions of global crises.

Madbouly said: "There are many measures taken by the government to support the industrial sector, and we have previously met with you and it was agreed to put forward a new initiative in this regard."

The Minister of Finance explained the features of the new initiative to support the productive sectors (industry and agriculture), noting in the context that a number of meetings were held regarding this initiative with representatives of the industrial sector in Egypt, and a new initiative was finalized to support this vital sector.

Maait said: “The most prominent features of the initiative to support the productive sectors through reducing interest rates on loans provided to these sectors to help them face these negative repercussions. The total value of the proposed initiative, which starts as of the approval of the cabinet at its meeting next week  is about EGP 150 billion, for a period of five years, of which about EGP 140 billion are financing working capital operations, in addition to about EGP 10 billion financing the purchase of capital goods."

The Minister of Finance stated that the amount of credit available to each company will be determined in light of the size of its business and the banking rules regulating that, stressing that financing will be provided to companies joining the initiative at a low interest rate of 11%, provided that the state bears the difference in the interest rate.