$3 billion loan to Egypt by UEA
The state news agency WAM said yesterday, The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced a $3 billion aid package to Egypt. The announcement was made at a meeting with Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf in Abu Dhabi by Deputy UAE Prime Minister Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahayan. It was his first visit to the oil-producing Gulf Arab state since an uprising ousted president Hosni Mubarak in February. The agency said Sheikh Khalifa also ordered the allocation of $750 million more in soft loans for various projects and $750 million for housing and infrastructure projects for youths.
In early May, Egypt approached international donors and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help it plug an estimated $11 billion balance of payments gap in 2011/2012 after the political turmoil. On a visit to Abu Dhabi on Monday, finance minister of Egypt Samir Radwan said through a combination of aid from Arab states and with local market issuance.
On June 5, Egypt had sealed a $3 billion financial package from the IMF. The country would not need to borrow after all from the World Bank or the IMF after securing the package, Radwan said. The IMF and the World Bank had also offered a large lending package.