Egypt is ranking at number one in the field of commercial policy reforms, leading 100 countries according to a World Bank report

The report has also placed Egypt at number 92 in terms of administrati...

Egypt is ranking at number one in the field of commercial policy reforms, leading 100 countries according to a World Bank report The report has also placed Egypt at number 92 in terms of administrative awareness and at  number 84 in public sector  reforms in terms of  public sector transparency.  The World Bank report has also reported a 4.9% actual economic growth of GDP in 2005 as opposed to 3.1% in 2003.  The report predicts a 6% actual growth rate in 2008 with the growing participation of the private sector and the government.  Market  shares have also soared ten times in Egypt and Dubai. The report has awarded Egypt the top ranking position in terms of cutting down on customs tariffs in five years 2000-2005, a fact which has awakened the privatization program over the last five years witnessing the largest government sell offs including a 20% sell off of the Egyptian Telecommunications company in December 2005 exhuming returns of 900 million dollars. The report has outlined that the government is considering bids for the sale of 45 companies to encourage foreign investments in 2006 and has commended the simplification of tax procedures and the cutting down of taxes, in addition to the restructuring of the banking sector. The report also pointed to the new pension system which will encourage early retirement and the introduction of new rules to combat corruption as part of serious effort to introduce infrastructural reforms in Egypt. ‏‏  The World Bank report has also pointed to the economic awakening in Egypt which has benefited from manufactured exports and the growth in the services sector in addition to returns from tourism and the Suez Canal.  The report  mentions a surge in export services by 20% annually over five years.  Textiles exports have increased by 6% in 2005 in the wake of the QIZ protocol. The report put the number of Egyptians working abroad in Arab countries at 7% while Egyptian transfers have dropped to less than 3% of the GDP.  The report said that Egypt’s dependence on oil exports has dropped.  The World Bank has mentioned that the flow of foreign capital has taken a turn from the Gulf to the industrial projects in Egypt including  cement and oil refineries with agreements worth five and ten billion dollars last year. (source:Al-Ahram)