The Finance Ministry unveiled its draft budget for the coming fiscal year, which willsee the government spend more money on education, healthcare, social protection, and food and petrol subsidies, according to the statements from the ministry (here and here).

#1- Education is getting a boost: The government allocated EGP 858 bn to the educationsector in the next fiscal year’s draft budget, up 45% y-o-y. Funding directed towards scientific research will also increase 40% y-o-y to just under EGP 140 bn.

#2- Healthcare will see a nearly 25% increase in the draft budget, with EGP 496 bnallocated to the sector — of which, over 8 bn will go to health ins. (up 38% y-o-y) and EGP 10 bn to state-funded treatments (up 25% y-o-y).

#3- Social protection is set for a 20% increase, with EGP 636 bn earmarked in the comingfiscal year’s draft budget.

Remember: Healthcare and education were among the key targets under the government’s economic and social development plan for the next fiscal year. The government wants to hire some 150k school teachers, build more technological universities, and push for the accreditation of public universities. It also wants to increase the private sector’s share in healthcare to 50% by 2027 — up from a current 30%. Educators, doctors and nurses also saw their wages increase and pensioners received a 15% increase in their payouts as part of a recent package of social protection measures.

Other key takeaways from the draft budget include:

  • EGP 134 bn earmarked to subsidize basic commodities, up 5% y-o-y.
  • EGP 155 bn earmarked for petrol subsidies, up 30% y-o-y.
  • EGP 12 bn allocated to back social housing initiatives, up 17% y-o-y.
  • EGP 23 bn allocated to support export activities.
  • EGP 18 bn allocated to back the rebooted subsidized loan program for industry and agriculture, which offers credit facilities to manufacturers at an interest rate of 15%.
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