Parliament members have previously raised some queries with regards to the whereabouts of the privatization collection which has been established through a program known as the government assets departments.  Parliamentarians have called for an explanation with regards to the budget share of privatization revenues.

The People’s Assembly has consequently called on the Central Statistics Accounting Agency to research the pending issue and review the outcome in parliament.  Both the Ministers of Finance and Investment have welcomed the investigation which will help alleviate concerns and confirm the absence of controversy among the figures presented in the budget; saying the differences are simply related to nomenclature, time period and different mathematical procedures.

The Ministries of investment and Finance have referred all financial data to the Statistics Agency to empower its employees to carry out the revision of the budget figures.

The data presented by the two Ministries included the following:

Determining all sales carried out within the settlement program on expanding ownership of companies, lands and assets owned by the state as of the 90s up till June 2005.

Determining all public sector company sales since 2000

Exploitation of the privatization collection in a legal framework to settle bank debts, finance early pension, reform the financial sector of companies.

.All laws related to financial budget accounts in the past years as passed by the Peoples’ Assembly

All resolutions related to the regulation of privatization.

Financial statements including privatization collection in government accounts for review by the Central Bank and the Central Statistics Agency

The privatization collection up till 30/6/2005 for the public sector has reached 18.544 billion pounds for the public sector.  Sales of joint companies over the years 2000-2006 have reached 16.864 billion pounds; a total of 35.408 billion pounds.

The amounts allocated to the Ministry of Finance have totaled 16.6 billion pounds

The Statistics Agency has pointed out that the total privatization collection has reached 50.49 billion pounds.

The results have matched all previous accounts submitted by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Investment as follows:

sales collection affiliated to the governorates and local departments in addition to what is mentioned

The distribution of privatization sales collection which is 48.128 billion pounds is as follows:

As for the 16.6 billion pounds allocated to the treasury, the Ministry of Finance has reiterated that the amount is the same that has been registered by the Central Agency for Accounting and its final financial statements.

The table shows that the privatization collection gained by the treasury has led to a reduction in government public debt and consequently to a reduction in the budget deficit by 16.6 billion pounds, bearing that the last fiscal year the privatization revenue has led to the government expanding its capital expenditure thus leading to an increase in the standard of living of the Egyptian citizen.

In light of the above, it is to be understood that what has been jointly reiterated by Minister of Finance Dr. Youssef Boutros Ghali and Minister of Investment Dr. Mahmoud Mohei el Din at the People’s Assembly is true with regards to the absence of controversy between the figures indicated by the Ministries of Finance and Investment.

The figures indicate that the analyst must bear in mind what the nomenclature is supposed to represent with regards to the net value of sales and which does not necessarily represent all amounts transferred to the treasury but that part of the amount is transferred to the owners in different agencies such as insurance companies and national banks.

The Ministries of Finance and Investment finally ascertain their appreciation for the Central Statistics Accounting Agency in fiscal monitoring

 Both Ministries have also ascertained their keenness to protect the treasury accounts and have ruled out the minutest possibility in using any privatization revenue amounts except within legal statutes.

(source : Ministry of Finance)