Egypt’s Cabinet has approved the expansion of its concessional financing initiative for priority industrial sectors, launching a second phase that broadens the range of eligible industries and activities, according to a joint statement by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Industry.
Ahmed Kouchouk, Minister of Finance, and Khaled Hashem, Minister of Industry, said the expanded programme will finance the purchase of machinery, equipment and production lines for targeted sectors identified by the Ministry of Industry and the Industrial Development Authority in coordination with the Federation of Egyptian Industries.
The initiative aims to improve the quality and competitiveness of Egyptian products in line with international standards, deepen local manufacturing, localise new industries and unlock new export markets.
Under the revised framework, the maximum financing limit per client has been increased to EGP 100m, up from EGP 75m. For related parties, the ceiling has been raised to EGP 150m instead of EGP 100m. The credit extended to each beneficiary will be determined in line with business volume and prevailing banking regulations.
The first phase of the initiative was launched in January 2025 with a total allocation cap of EGP 30bn. Priority will continue to be given to projects located in areas most in need of development and those with high labour intensity, including South Giza, the Suez Canal region governorates, border governorates such as the Red Sea south of Safaga, and Upper Egypt.
The statement noted that a set of performance indicators has been introduced to measure the initiative’s impact on the national economy. These include growth in company revenues and assets, increases in production capacity and output volumes, a reduction in the local supply gap, higher domestic value-added, integration into global value chains, job creation and the localisation of new industries.
The concessional interest rate borne by beneficiaries will fall below 15% annually as local value-added rises. The preferential rate will also apply to newly introduced industries not previously manufactured locally but characterised by high import volumes. The reduced rate will be available for five years from the launch of the initiative, with the Ministry of Finance covering the difference between the market rate and the subsidised rate over that period.
The initiative covers sub-sectors within pharmaceuticals, engineering industries, food industries, textiles and ready-made garments, chemicals, mining, building materials and refractories, leather, and metal industries.
