Statement issued by the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development
Newspaper Title: Egypt Cainet
Newspaper Number:
Sunday - 4 June 2023
Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, discussed today the report of the Financial, Economic, and Investment Affairs Committee regarding the draft law adopting the economic and social development plan for the fiscal year 2023-2024 before the general session of the Senate, in the presence of Counsellor Abdel Wahab Abdel Razek, Chairman of the Senate, and members of the council.
During her speech, Dr. Hala El-Said explained that the plan document was formulated with its orientations, objectives, and developmental programs according to a participatory approach and a constructive national dialogue that brings together all segments of society in order to strengthen the bonds of cooperation, coordination, and integration between government agencies, the private sector, and civil society to maximize the public benefit from the convergence of development efforts within the framework of the general plan targets of the state.
El-Said discussed the repercussions of the Russian/Ukrainian crisis on the global economy, which manifested in shortages in the supply of goods in international markets due to supply chain disruptions, leading to unprecedented increases in prices of food, energy, and basic metals. This has also led to growing inflationary pressures worldwide, prompting central banks to raise interest rates and tighten their monetary policies in an effort to contain inflation. El-Said noted that these developments have caused severe disruptions in financial markets and foreign direct investment flows, due to a declining business sector confidence in the safety of the investment climate and increasing concerns about the instability of the global monetary system.
El-Said also discussed the negative impact of these developments on global economic growth rates, citing a decline to 3.4% in 2022 from 6.3% in 2021, with a further expected decline to 2.8% in 2023, according to IMF estimates in April 2023. This applies equally to global trade, foreign direct investment flows, and all other indicators that have been experiencing a continuous slowdown due to the unprecedented high levels of global inflation. El-Said emphasized that these indicators reflect the size of the challenges facing the global economy, with their repercussions affecting all countries worldwide.
El-Said noted that Egypt is not immune to the challenges and uncertainties posed by the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, and highlighted Egypt's quick precautionary measures and preemptive steps to secure supply sources in the short term, as well as the adoption of a number of programs and initiatives to quickly provide social protection, especially to the most affected groups by the crisis. She also mentioned seizing some promising opportunities provided by the crisis to increase exports. However, El-Said stressed the importance of monitoring the negative effects of the crisis on the Egyptian economy and not underestimating its repercussions.
El-Said reviewed the main pillars that the 2023/2024 plan relied on, stating that they include a full commitment to the objectives of the national strategy for human rights, affirming the right to development that the Egyptian state attaches utmost importance to in its development direction, in addition to consistency and compatibility with the targets of the national agenda for achieving sustainable development within the framework of Egypt's vision "2030", as well as the accurate application of the provisions of the General Planning Law of the state as the legislative framework for the planning system.
El-Said also added that the pillars included fulfilling the constitutional entitlements related to public spending allocations for health, school and university education, and scientific research, which are specified at no less than 10% of the gross national product, as well as continuing the development planning based on evidence, indicators, international and local reports, such as the Sustainable Development Report for 2022, the Egyptian governorates competitiveness index for 2022, the national birth and death registration system, and the local human development index for 2023.
El-Said also stated that the plan's pillars included applying modern development and planning concepts to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the planning process, such as strategic planning, inclusive growth evidence, program and performance budgeting, gender-responsive planning, environmental sustainability standards, and green economy.
Source : Egypt Cabinet
Translated by Rehab Taha
Cairo Chamber
