Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has just been sworn in for the third term, continuing to govern the country until mid-2030, in the context of Egypt facing many economic difficulties due to foreign currency shortages and escalating inflation, as well as many challenges in a volatile region.
Economic difficulties along with security challenges stemming from regional geopolitical developments are placing many heavy tasks on the Egyptian leader in the new term to steer the Pyramid country to stability and development.
In the presidential election from December 10-12, 2023, current Egyptian President El-Sisi was re-elected for the third term with 89.6% of the vote. Prestige, as well as achievements in the fields of politics, security, foreign affairs and socio-economics in two consecutive terms since 2014, brought El-Sisi an overwhelming victory over the opponents. President El-Sisi brought Egypt back to stability after the wave of protests that led to the riots and instability of the Arab Spring. Egypt’s internal political and security situation has been maintained, while social life has been continuously improved. Egypt is increasingly asserting its influence, position and key role in Africa and the Middle East.
However, President El-Sisi will face many challenges in the next six years. The country’s economy has not been able to escape from stagnation due to foreign currency shortages and escalating inflation. The current conflict in the Gaza Strip, as well as instability in the Red Sea, have negatively impacted the Egyptian economy.
Tensions in the Red Sea have caused revenue from the Suez Canal to drop more than 50% since the beginning of this year, and the tourism industry shows signs of slowing down. Tourism and shipping are two of the major sources of foreign exchange in Egypt. The North African country is running out of foreign currency due to falling tourism revenues and instability in shipping routes along the Suez Canal.
According to data from the World Bank (WB), Egypt’s foreign debt increased from 46 billion USD to more than 165 billion USD in the 2013-2022 period, becoming the country with the second largest risk of default after Ukraine. In February, annual consumer price inflation in urban Egypt soared to 35.7%, far exceeding forecasts.
Egypt is trying to increase USD revenue by supporting industry and exports. The Egyptian government is assessed to have implemented difficult but promising measures to balance macroeconomics, unify the exchange rate, and significantly tighten monetary and fiscal policies. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced the immediate disbursement of 820 million USD to Egypt, which was part of the 3 billion USD support package that the IMF provided for the struggling North African economy from the end of 2022.
To get the country out of trouble, President El-Sisi will have to carry out several structural reforms as well as implement timely policies and solutions to energise the economy. In his strategy, in addition to completing the Vision 2030 and the “Decent Life Initiative” to promote rural areas, El-Sisi focuses on developing industry, domestic production, export, equitisation of state-owned enterprises, support for the private sector, development of energy sectors, doubling agricultural land area to ensure food security, attracting foreign investment, as well as ensuring social security and job creation.
Faced with domestic and foreign issues that need to be handled, President El-Sisi continues to implement policies that have brought about many successes in the previous two terms to make the country overcome difficult times, worthy of the trust of Egyptian voters. He shoulders the important mission of the leader of Egypt to continue moving forward, developing and asserting a solid position in the region.
NDO
