According to the decision, published in the Official Gazette on Tuesday, the land will be used to help reduce the country’s public debt and to issue sovereign sukuk (Islamic bonds).
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has issued a decree allocating a 174-million-square-meter plot of state-owned land in the Red Sea Governorate to the Ministry of Finance.
According to the decision, published in the Official Gazette on Tuesday, the land will be used to help reduce the country’s public debt and to issue sovereign sukuk.
Government data seen by Al Arabiya Business shows that Egypt’s external debt decreased by $111 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, reaching $155.09 billion by year-end.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly stated in earlier remarks that Egypt has a clear framework for capping external borrowing, adding that the issuance of bonds aims to extend debt maturities.
He also noted that these measures have returned Egypt’s external debt-to-GDP ratio to safe levels, with a target to reduce external debt by $1.5 to $2 billion annually.
Last year, Egypt signed a deal with the United Arab Emirates to sell 170 million square meters of land in Ras El Hekma on the North Coast for $24 billion. The agreement also included converting $11 billion of UAE debt into local investments.
Egypt is currently working to convert Gulf state deposits held at the Central Bank into long-term investments as part of its broader strategy to reduce external debt.
