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Egypt targets €4bn EU funding by June

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El Sisi met in Cairo in December 2024 Ursula von der Leyen/X
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El Sisi met in Cairo in December 2024

Egypt is aiming to strike a deal with the European Union (EU) to secure €4 billion ($4.2 billion) in financing to back its current reform agenda, according to a media report.

Cairo has started negotiations with the EU, with the funds directed towards budget support and not specific projects, Asharq Business reported, quoting minister of planning, economic development, and international cooperation Rania Al Mashat.

She said that the deal is expected to be concluded by June.

In March 2024, the EU agreed to a €7.4 billion funding package for Egypt. The deal consists of €5 billion in concessional loans, €1.8 billion in investments and €600 million in grants over the next three years.

The deal is part of a wave of funding from Egypt’s international partners and multilateral lenders that the country’s finance minister, Mohamed Maait, has said is worth $20 billion

This month, finance minister Ahmed Kouchouk said the country aims to raise nearly $3 billion by the end of the current fiscal year, which ends in June 2025.

Despite Egypt facing headwinds from the challenging external environment, the government has agreed to speed up efforts on the divestment programme to reduce the high debt burden.

In December 2024, Osama Rabie, chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, said canal revenue, one of Egypt’s main sources of income, was down 60 percent, or $7 billion, year on year in 2024 due to ongoing instability in the Red Sea disrupting global shipping traffic.