Activities in Egypt

(1) Current medium- to long-term development plan

The current long-term plan (20-year plan) is the “Long-term Socioeconomic Development Vision (2002/03-2021/22 [1])” which was developed by the previous Obeid cabinet (1999-2004).The “Egypt and the 21st Century (1997/98-2016/17)” plan, which was developed by the Al-Ganzouri cabinet prior to the Obeid cabinet, was aimed at expanding residential areas concentrated in the Delta zone and the Nile Valley from 5.5% to 25% of the national land, and included projects with mega-scale investment (e.g. development projects for the Sinai Peninsula and southern Nile Valley). However, in view of the growth of the budget deficit and stagnation in economic growth (3.2% from 2000 to 2003), in the current “Long-term Socioeconomic Development Vision”, the expansion plan for residential areas is revised to 10-12%, while a policy framework is adopted focusing on well-balanced development and stable and sustainable growth of the macro-economy as well as on poverty reduction/improvement of living standards in line with the current state of the economy.

• [1] In Egypt, the fiscal year runs from July to June of the following year.

(2) Current five-year plan

The current “5th Five-Year Plan” (2002/03-2006/07) covers the first five years of the above-stated long-term vision and is aimed at “modernization of Egypt and integration into the global economy”. In particular, the plan emphasizes improvement of stagnant economic growth to revitalize the Egyptian economy and recognizes that the economy has been affected by uncertain trends in the world economy such as globalization, trade liberalization, international capital movement and growth of regional blocks, while placing greater emphasis than before on the role of the private sector and clarifying role-sharing between public investment schemes and private sector initiatives.