Fifth, sixth reviews completed: The IMF Executive Board completed its fifth and sixth reviews of our USD 8 bn Extended Fund Facility (EFF) as well as its first review of our Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), allowing for the immediate disbursement of USD 2.3 bn — USD 2 bn from the EFF and USD 273 mn from the RSF. The Madbouly government and IMF staff reached a staff-level agreement on the reviews late December.

The message is clear: We’re on the right track, but more needs to be done. The Fund pointed to an improvement in macroeconomic conditions and fiscal performance, citing a dip in inflation, a narrowing account deficit, and higher tax revenues.

But the tone criticizing lagging privatization efforts saw little change, with the Fund noting “slower than envisaged” progress on the divestment agenda. “While rapid progress in trade facilitation, digitalization, and business climate reforms is expected to yield positive growth effects, their impact will remain limited without tangible progress on divestment,” IMF Deputy Managing Director Nigel Clarke said. The IMF has been calling for more privatization efforts for some time now, but we’ve constantly missed our targets on that front.

We’re hopeful that 2026 bears some good privatization news: The IPO calendar is heavy with anticipated state offerings, including Banque du Caire and at least two companies affiliated with the Armed Forces’ National Service Projects Organization. And we’re bracing for more offerings after sources told us that the government is preparing to unveil a new list of state-owned enterprises slated for listing on the EGX, in a renewed push to revive its privatization program.

We’re nearing the end of our program with the Fund — it’s set to conclude on 15 December. So far, we’ve unlocked some USD 5.2 bn from the EFF and the RSF.

The road ahead: “Continued progress in state-owned enterprise and bank governance reforms, alongside the climate agenda, will be essential to support resilient, inclusive, and durable growth,” the Fund said. Exchange rate flexibility, disinflation, and debt management were also high on its list of policy recommendations.

Risk-wise, the future offers good and bad news. The fund remains wary of the knock-on effects of heightened regional geopolitical tensions and the possibility of tighter global financial conditions squeezing recovery. A clear path for overperformance, though, is possible if a faster-than-expected pickup in Suez Canal traffic and a rebound in hydrocarbon production are seen.

What about the RSF? Two key reforms helped us unlock this tranche of sustainability-linked funding: The government publishing an implementation schedule to meet its ambitious renewables target — 42% of our energy mix by 2030 — and issuing directives requiring banks to monitor and report their exposure to climate transition risks.

What’s next? The seventh review will likely be pushed back to late April or May after the IMF and World Bank’s annual spring meetings, a source has previously told EnterpriseAM.

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