Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, the government was stepping up efforts to settle financial obligations between ministries, public authorities and other state entities to strengthen their financial positions and improve their efficiency.
Madbouly made the remarks during a meeting to review measures to resolve financial obligations between the Finance Ministry and the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC). “The issue of financial entanglements receives significant attention from the government,” Madbouly said, citing efforts to eliminate their negative impact on ministries and public authorities and strengthen their ability to deliver services to citizens.
He said the government was holding a series of meetings to reach settlements, particularly on long-standing obligations that had accumulated over decades, with the aim of closing the files permanently. Over recent months, the government has signed a cooperation protocol to settle financial obligations involving the Finance Ministry, the Higher Education and Scientific Research Ministry, and the Planning and Economic Development Ministry related to financing the establishment of 11 state-owned private universities, Madbouly said.
It has also signed two framework agreements to resolve historical financial obligations, some dating back to the 1980s, he added. Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk said state agencies were coordinating to resolve outstanding financial obligations as part of structural reforms aimed at making better use of state assets, improving financing structures and strengthening the performance of public entities.
Supply and Internal Trade Minister Sherif Farouk outlined the reasons behind the accumulation of GASC's debt to the Finance Ministry, citing regional geopolitical crises, higher import costs for some subsidized commodities and other economic factors. The meeting reviewed proposals to address the debt and measures to settle the financial obligations between the ministry and the authority, as well as ongoing efforts to close the file.
GASC plays a key role in securing basic commodities for citizens and maintaining strategic stocks sufficient to meet domestic needs for extended periods, the government said. Resolving the authority's financial obligations with the Finance Ministry would help strengthen its ability to maintain those stocks and fulfill its role in securing essential commodities, it added.
Press Release regarding POLITICO report on El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant Project