Egypt’s Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk announced that the government achieved solid fiscal results in the fiscal year 2024/2025, allowing for increased spending on health, education, social protection, and support for economic activity, while avoiding the imposition of new taxes.

 

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday to review financial performance, Kouchouk said economic and fiscal indicators have shown marked improvement, reflecting positively on citizens and investors alike. He noted that the government directed additional resources to priority sectors without reducing overall public expenditure.

 

During FY 2024/25, social support, grants, and subsidies totaled EGP 642 billion, a 12% annual increase. This included EGP 165.4 billion for food subsidies, up 24% year-on-year, and EGP 43.2 billion for social protection programs such as Takaful and Karama, marking growth of 22.8%. Contributions to pension funds reached EGP 142.7 billion, while transport subsidies amounted to EGP 2.5 billion.

 

The government also stepped up investments in health and education. Spending on healthcare rose by 19.3%, with EGP 15 billion allocated for treatment at the state’s expense, benefiting 2.5 million citizens, and EGP 7.4 billion for health insurance programs. Education spending grew by 20.1%, including EGP 4 billion for hiring 160,000 new teachers, EGP 6.9 billion for printing school books, and EGP 7.2 billion for school meals, benefiting 15.6 million students.

 

In housing support, the ministry disbursed EGP 9.3 billion under the mortgage finance initiative, providing affordable housing for nearly 70,000 citizens. Additional subsidies included EGP 6.57 billion for local wheat, EGP 60.2 billion for imported wheat, EGP 7.2 billion for cotton, and EGP 11.2 billion for sugarcane.

 

Kouchouk said around EGP 440 billion were directed to energy-related commitments, ensuring stable power generation and settling foreign partner dues. Another EGP 45 billion supported productive and export activities, including EGP 14.3 billion for agriculture and industry, and EGP 18 billion for export subsidies and repayment of arrears.

 

On revenues, the finance minister highlighted a 35% increase in tax receipts, attributing the growth to stronger cooperation with the business community rather than new taxes. He reported that 402,000 taxpayers applied to settle disputes, 107,000 joined the simplified system voluntarily, and 650,000 new or amended tax filings generated an additional EGP 78 billion.

 

Looking ahead, Kouchouk announced plans to introduce a new package of tax relief measures to ease compliance, boost investment, and encourage voluntary participation, stressing that the ministry remains focused on simplifying procedures, resolving disputes amicably, and accelerating VAT refunds.