The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday (September 26th) said Egypt's economic reform programme is "off to a good start".
In a report for the first review of Egypt's reform programme, the IMF said "the government is carrying out bold but necessary reforms while protecting the poor".
"The Egyptian authorities have embarked on an ambitious reform programme and have taken decisive measures aimed at restoring macroeconomic stability and sustainable public finances," said Subir Lall, the head of the team dealing with Egypt at the IMF.
"At the same time, by strengthening social protection measures, they have sought to protect the most vulnerable," he said.
Economic activity in Egypt has been gathering strength, Lall said, and efforts at reining in the budget deficit have begun to bear fruit.
With the liberalisation of the foreign exchange market, foreign currency shortages have disappeared, he added.
"Looking ahead through the end of this year and into next year, the policy mix is also supportive of a decline in inflation from the high levels in the summer," he said.
Egypt launched a reform programme after its economy faced rising imbalances that led to high public debt, a widening current account deficit, and declining official reserves.
To support the reforms, the government embarked in November 2016 on an IMF-supported programme to restore the stability of its finances, promote growth and employment, while shielding the poor from the adverse effects of the changes.
