Egypt's Minister of Planning Hala El-Saeed said on Thursday that a specialised committee of legal and economic experts has been formed to create the statutes of the newly introduced EGP 200 billion sovereign wealth fund known as the ‘Egypt Fund.' On Monday, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ratified Law 177 of 2018 for the establishment of the Egypt Fund, which involves funding for utilising natural sources and attracting investments. The fund will be financed by cash as well as in-kind contributions in the form of under-utilised state-owned assets such as land, buildings, factories, companies, and properties that can be more efficiently utilised to generate better returns. The committee is expected to establish the fund's articles of association as well as set rules upon which the fund's employees will be selected. The regulations of the fund will be issued by a decision from Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly following the approval of parliament within 60 days from the date of implementation of the provisions of the fund law. The board of directors of the fund will be headed by the minister of planning and its members will include representatives from the ministries of finance and investment as well as five experts. The general assembly of the fund will comprise the prime minister and the ministers of planning, finance and investment as well as seven experts. The minister of planning said that the location for the headquarters of the fund is yet to be announced. The Egypt Fund seeks to maximise the utilisation of unexploited assets and wealth of the state, as well as diversify the sources of state profits and reduce the budget deficit. The fund will be also developing Egypt's natural resources in a sustainable manner to maximise the value of these resources for future generations by contributing to the establishment of companies or increasing their capital and investment in securities inside or outside Egypt. The authorised capital for the fund is EGP 200 billion and its issued capital is EGP 5 billion. The capital for the fund may be increased in cash or in any other way stipulated by the law. The law states that the president of the republic may, on the basis of the offer of the prime minister and the minister concerned, transfer the ownership of any of the unutilised assets owned by the state or any of its affiliates or subsidiaries to the Fund. The fund aims to attract the private sector and domestic and foreign partners to carry out projects that serve the government's development plans. The fund will also only invest within Egypt, and will encourage other funds to do so jointly with the government.
