Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has formed a unit to coordinate and follow up on the government IPOs programme, which the government launched in April.
Sources said that the unit will include Ayman Suleiman, Executive Director of the Sovereign Fund of Egypt; Ahmed Kochouk, Deputy Minister of Finance; Osama El Gohary, Head of the Center for Support and Decision Making in the Cabinet; and Mohamed Abdelaziz, Assistant Chairperson of the Financial Regulatory Authority.
The sources added that the unit will submit a monthly report on the IPOs programme, in coordination with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), to the Prime Minister’s advisor to follow up on the programme.
The unit will set a timetable for the government’s exit from public companies, provided that each company in the programme will either be offered on the Egyptian Exchange or sold to a strategic investor partially or totally.
According to the sources, the unit will supervise the implementation of the government offering program through continuous follow-up with the relevant ministers and the competent authority in the owning entity that contributes to these companies.
Egypt signed an agreement with the IFC, the arm of the World Bank Group, on Sunday, according to which the IFC will act as a strategic advisor to the government to implement the government offerings program.
According to a statement from the Cabinet, the agreement reflects the state’s directions and the decisions of the Supreme Investment Council to push efforts to attract investments, empower the private sector, stimulate the competitiveness of the Egyptian economy, and contribute to creating job opportunities and improving the living standards of citizens.
Madbouly said that the implementation of the consulting services agreement signed with the Corporation will be in coordination with the government procurement unit in the Council of Ministers, with the aim of activating and accelerating the pace of implementing the procurement program for the private sector to attract foreign direct investment.
According to the agreement, the International Finance Corporation will provide technical support and advice to the government offering program, assist in structuring and preparing companies targeted for offering to the private sector, and improve corporate governance, in a way that enhances capital flows and supports the state’s vision to achieve economic recovery.
Madbouly explained that the implementation of the advisory services agreement will be in close coordination with the Government Offerings Unit, with the aim of activating and accelerating the pace of implementing the offerings program for the private sector to attract foreign direct investments, by structuring the assets to be offered and preparing them for the offering process, improving governance mechanisms in these companies, and implementing offerings that will be agreed upon.
“The Egyptian government has stated its objectives very clearly to mobilize the private sector,” said Mokhtar Diop, Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation.
He added that selecting the International Finance Corporation as a strategic advisor to the government to support its vision of government proposals for the private sector will unleash an increase in the participation of the private sector to build a sustainable, resilient and inclusive Egyptian economy.
