CAIRO: Egypt’s infrastructure spending during the last seven years amounted to EGP1.7 trillion ($100 billion), according to the country’s Minister of Planning and Economic Development Hala El-Said.
The spending had a direct impact on Egypt’s ranking in the Global Competitiveness Index as it focused on improving the quality of roads and providing uninterrupted power to the private sector and citizens, she said on Saturday.
She also said the government was taking several measures to boost public-private partnerships to expedite economic growth, and that the government had founded the first Egyptian sovereign fund designed to carry out projects in partnership with the private sector.
The minister said that, to strengthen such partnerships, the government kept the private sector and other stakeholders in the loop while formulating economic policies and regulations.
One example was a recent investment law, which encouraged the participation of the private sector and its increased collaboration with the public sector.
The minister said these structural reforms could play a vital role in accelerating economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, as well as boosting overall growth.
El-Said said the government was proceeding with the implementation of structural reforms that would protect African economies from external shocks in the future.
