Budget indicators exceeded targets during the first nine months of the fiscal year on the back of economic reforms that pushed the private sector’s role to the forefront and helped attract more local and foreign investments, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said in a statement.

Revenues were up 57% y-o-y, reaching EGP 1.5 tn between July and March. Excluding the Ras El Hekma agreement, revenues were up 38%. While tax revenues were up 41% to over EGP 1 tn, non-tax revenues registered a 123% increase during the same period.

But, the budget deficit remained virtually unchanged y-o-y at5.4% of GDP, with government expenditure increasing nearly 51% y-o-y to EGP 2.3 tn, on the back of high interest rates and debt servicing bills, as well as increased spending on social security measures and multiple wage hikes.

A primary surplus of 3% of the GDP was achieved, logging EGP 416 bn — EGP 179 bn of which came from the landmark Ras El Hekma development agreement — which is more than eight times higher than last year’s primary surplus, according to the statement. During the same period in the last fiscal year, the primary surplus of around EGP 50 bn accounted for only 0.5% of GDP.

Speaking of debts: Maait said the government eyes bringing down debt servicing bills to 30%of government spending in the medium term, as part of a wider plan to reduce the state’s debt-to-GDP ratio to 80% by 2027. The government said last month it sees the ratio narrowing to below 90% in the next fiscal year.

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