Press Release No. 13/81

Press Release: Statement at the Conclusion of the Visit by IMF Director Masood Ahmed to Egypt

March 17, 2013

Mr. Masood Ahmed, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), visited Cairo on March 17, 2013. During his visit, Mr. Ahmed met with Prime Minister Hisham Kandil, Central Bank of Egypt Governor Hisham Ramez, Finance Minister Al-Mursi Hegazy, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Ashraf Al-Araby, and other officials.

At the conclusion of his visit, Mr. Ahmed made the following statement:

“I would like to thank Prime Minister Kandil and the economic team for the useful and constructive discussions we had today on how to address Egypt’s economic and financial challenges. I welcome the authorities’ determination to move forward with their economic reform program that seeks to address these challenges in a socially balanced manner.

“I reiterated that the IMF is committed to support Egypt in this endeavor. We agreed that our discussions would continue diligently over the coming weeks with the aim of reaching agreement on possible financial support from the IMF.”