Egypt appears to be making faster headway on the IMF’s climate-linked reform agenda than on some of the Fund’s broader program priorities, with the latest country report saying “performance under the [Resilience and Sustainability Facility] RSF has been strong,” as Cairo moves ahead with the structural measures tied to the RSF, according to the IMF’s latest country report (pdf). The Fund said the authorities “completed all reform measures due by June 2025,” pointing to “strong implementation capacity, sustained commitment, and effective coordination” as Egypt advances the USD 1.3 bn program, which links disbursements to reforms in energy, climate-risk management, and resource governance.

Egypt has already unlocked the first SDR 200 mn under the RSF after completing the first two reform measures due under the program. Egypt is now looking to push the RSF’s timeline out to 15 December, and re-phase future access to keep it aligned with the revised IMF review schedule. The Fund staff backed the “request for extension and rephasing under the RSF to align the length and availability dates with EFF review schedule,” according to the report.

The remaining SDR 800 mn will be released in stages over the rest of 2026, with the next SDR 100 mn linked to the second review and the bulk of the financing — seven equal tranches totaling SDR 700 mn — set to follow the third review in November and the completion of further reform measures.

Why this matters: The RSF points to a different kind of IMF engagement — one that ties financing to longer-term reforms aimed at climate resilience, energy transition, and the state’s capacity to manage environmental risk. In Egypt’s case, that means the Fund is not just looking for macro stabilization, but for evidence that climate-related reform is being built into the way the government plans, finances, and regulates. That also means the remaining money will depend on whether we can keep the reform drive moving.

Energy reforms are at the heart of the program

Energy reforms sit at the core of Egypt’s RSF agenda, with the IMF explicitly listing “energy and electricity reforms” among the main areas covered by the facility.

The first major step on that front was a 2030 implementation plan for renewable energy. The IMF said the authorities “adopted and published a plan of renewable energy implementation by 2030, detailing the technology type, capacity, location, timeline, and funding source.” That gives the reform drive a much more concrete shape than broad commitments alone, laying out what will be built, where, and on what timetable.

Egypt has also paired that renewables roadmap with a plan to make room for the new capacity on the grid. Alongside the renewable energy strategy, the IMF said the authorities “submitted a budget plan for cabinet approval, outlining the annual investments needed in grid and network enhancement for 2026-2029 to support the renewable energy projects described in the plan.” That points to a parallel focus on electricity infrastructure rather than just generation targets.

The RSF also has its eyes on the banking sector

One clear sign of how the RSF is pushing climate policy into the financial system is the CBE’s June reporting directive. The IMF cited the CBE’s directive issued last year “mandating all banks to monitor and report their exposures to firms that may face material transition risks due to the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)” and that the same directive “also included provisions related to the United Kingdom’s CBAM, set to be implemented in 2027.”

The next step is to translate that directive into reporting and supervision. The report said that “by the end of first quarter of 2026, the necessary information about the directive that needs to be conveyed to the banks, including the supervisory implications of the directive, as well as the amended reporting template of CBAM directive, will be uploaded on CBE website to provide banks with the required data under the mentioned directive.” In the meantime, the CBE will also be monitoring banks’ questions on the new rules as it considers possible amendments by the end of 2026.

Water governance is next in line

The RSF reform agenda also stretches into water management. The report says the government remains committed to establishing the National Water Council (NWC), chaired by the prime minister and bringing together the main ministries and agencies involved in water allocation and use. The NWC will “issue a circular by June 2026 clarifying roles and responsibilities for generating, sharing, and publishing water supply and demand data to support allocation decisions.”

From there, the government is expected to “develop and publish the National Water Allocation Framework (NWAF) by August 2026,” setting “transparent prioritization criteria, processes, and rules for licensing, allocation, and monitoring under normal and drought conditions, aligned with international best practices and national needs.” The Fund said this would help close a long-standing institutional gap by putting water allocation under a unified, formally endorsed framework.

Climate risk is being built into state investment planning

Another big part of the RSF agenda is making climate risk a formal part of how the state evaluates investment projects. The IMF said the Planning Ministry “has updated climate-related criteria in the national project selection manual, circulated it to all ministries, and begun applying the new framework to all major FY2025/26 projects above EGP 500 mn.”

The report also highlights work underway to build the state’s climate-risk data infrastructure, including a “unified climate-risk data framework,” technical teams, and an upgraded “investment planning system to integrate climate risk assessments.” It is also “cataloguing new fixed assets, collecting risk data, coordinating with the Ministry of Environment, and preparing a December 2025 progress report outlining identified risks and mitigation measures.”

Some of the remaining pieces will depend on outside technical support. The IMF said that for the reform measures tied to the fiscal risk statement and disaster risk financing, “the authorities will rely on technical assistance from the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department,” while “the World Bank’s Environment Team is expected to support the implementation of the Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) system and the non-compliance framework” for the methane reduction reform measure.

The program will need closer tracking from here

The next phase of the RSF will hinge on whether the government can keep the reform process measurable and verifiable as implementation moves forward. That is likely to put more weight on how the program is tracked across institutions, especially as future disbursements remain tied to delivery rather than headline commitments alone.

The transparency push is also expected to extend to disclosure and reporting, with the government looking to shorten the reporting lag on the CBE’s net international reserves data to improve the timing and availability of information, according to the report. Together, that points to a more tightly monitored phase of the program as Egypt moves from early reform milestones into a longer implementation cycle.

Looking ahead: With the RSF structured around phased disbursements and reform milestones, 2026 will be a test of whether the Madbouly government can sustain implementation momentum in a tougher external environment, marked by geopolitical unrest, higher financing costs, and volatile energy markets.

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