The ministries of petroleum and finance will establish joint committees to discuss a number of issues during the coming period, according to vice minister of finance for fiscal policies Ahmed Kouchouk.
He stated that the committees will meet monthly to discuss taxes, subsidies, profits that accrue the general budget, the auditing of debt, the impact of economic changes, and the growth of the production sector.
He added that the subsidy expenditures decreased throughout fiscal year 2015/2016 by EGP 27bn, in comparison to the original budget allocations, as a result of the decline in global oil prices. Meanwhile, there was an increase in the cost of importing a number of products. This increase, he added, was estimated at EGP 23-25bn due to the Egyptian pound depreciation against the US dollar.
The last fiscal year estimated the value of oil at $70 a barrel, the exchange rate of the US dollar at EGP 7.55, and the allocations for fuel subsidies at EGP 61 bn. However, the world oil price dropped to $40-45 a barrel, and the Central Bank of Egypt devalued the national currency to EGP 8.88 against the US dollar at the end of March.
