A joint initiative by the government and the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) to support local industries with EGP 100 billion will help increase the country's economic growth rates and the gross domestic product (GDP). The fund will benefit around 96,000 eligible factories, CBE Deputy Governor Gamal Negm said. The GDP is planned to increase to 7.5 percent annually, and growth rates will rise to 5.9 percent, up from 5.2 percent, by the completion of the initiative, Negm told a press conference held in Cairo on Monday. Over the past few years, the CBE has launched a number of initiatives to boost the industry with EGP 15 billion, he said, referring to more than 865 factories receiving funds directed to increasing their capital and purchasing machinery and equipment. Egypt's exports are planned to reach around $200 billion by 2030, compared to $29 billion last year, he stressed. He added that 8,586 industrial entities will benefit from an initiative to drop the debts of defaulter factories which amount to EGP 31.2 billion. These factories will be eligible to the fund once they pay 50 percent of their original debt. Banks will then lift these factories off the defaulters list, he said. Defaulting factories have debt burdens worth EGP 35.6 billion, while their original debts stand at EGP 4.4 billion, Negm said, pointing out that the initiative mainly targets industrial entities with debts worth less than EGP 10 million.
