March 11, 2024 (MLN): The World Bank will provide Egypt with $3 billion in support now the North African nation has secured an expanded International Monetary Fund program, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said Sunday as reported by Bloomberg.
Egypt also expects the European Union to announce its support package soon, Maait said, outlining more details of the aid that could flow in following last week’s decision by the central bank to float the currency after a record 600 basis-point rate hike.
The flotation, which resulted in a 38% plunge in the pound’s value against the dollar, was a key catalyst for the IMF’s decision to agree to boosting the $3bn loan program it approved in 2022 to $8bn.
Also at play was Egypt’s securing of a $35bn investment deal with the United Arab Emirates, funding seen as key to easing the crippling foreign currency shortage the country has been grappling with.
Maait said the IMF would release the first tranche of funding under the new program after its board approves the revised program.
