IMF board approves $3 billion loan to support Egypt economy

The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) executive board has approved a 46-month extended fund facility (EFF) that will help relief Egypt’s financial situation, the fund said In a statement

The fund added that it would immediately disburse USD 347 mn of the loan to “help meet the balance of payments needs and provide support to the budget.”

The agreement will catalyse additional funding of $14 billion

The EFF will “catalyze additional financing of about USD 14 bn from Egypt’s international and regional partners, including new financing from GCC countries and other partners through the ongoing divestment of state-owned assets as well as traditional forms of financing from multilateral and bilateral creditors,” the statement said. We could also be getting a separate USD 1.3 bn from the IMF’s resilience and sustainability trust, pending further EFF reviews.

The IMF said in October that the facility would unlock USD 5 bn in additional funding, but yesterday increased that figure to USD 14 bn. The Fund did not disclose where the additional USD 9 bn will come from.