Egypt’s economy projected to grow by 67%: World Bank report – Egypt Independent

The Egyptian economy is poised to achieve record real growth rates, averaging approximately $6.0\%$ annually over the next twenty-five years ($2025$–$2050$), according to World Bank forecasts published in November $2025$.

Egypt is actively working to increase the economy’s capacity to create more job opportunities by raising growth rates and total investment (public and private). Total investment is expected to increase from $15\%$ and $17\%$ of GDP in the fiscal years $2023/24$ and $2024/25$, respectively, to reach $19\%$ in the current fiscal year ($2025/26$).

Addressing structural challenges in the labor market

Egypt further aims to raise this total investment ratio to $35\%$ by the fiscal year $2049/2050$. Although unemployment has decreased below $6.4\%$ of the total labor force (which numbers $33$ million individuals) in the last quarter of the previous fiscal year ($2024/25$), Egypt still faces two major challenges:

The first is the importance of increasing women’s participation in economic activity. The second is that job opportunities are often being created in sectors characterized by low added value.

In this regard, it is noteworthy that the number of new entrants to the labor market from universities, institutes, technical schools, and other educational institutions is around $1.3$ million individuals (male and female).

The Egyptian economy manages to create approximately one million job opportunities annually. The remaining numbers—most of whom are female—are excluded from the labor force (either because they no longer wish to join, especially after marriage, or because they are not actively searching for work as they prefer to dedicate their time to raising their children). Therefore, the officially announced low unemployment rates reflect a significant part of this actual reality.

The World Bank report also indicated that the vast majority of females in Egypt suffer from unemployment or prefer not to participate in the labor force. This reflects a structural imbalance that requires reform and an urgent need to incentivize women to engage in the labor market and empower them to participate actively in economic activity.

The $67\%$ economic boost: The power of closing the gender gap

The report also revealed a solution that could increase the size of Egypt’s economy by $67\%$—namely, by creating more jobs in higher value-added sectors.

The Bank predicted that achieving full employment in Egypt would lead to a $36\%$ increase in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Furthermore, closing the employment gap between males and females could raise that figure to a remarkable $67\%$.

The World Bank grounded its projections in the national economic development narrative, which is designed according to national priorities and informed by the visions of the World Bank Group and other partners.

The Bank emphasizes that job creation goes beyond simply raising employment rates; it must also involve further boosting real growth rates and improving the citizens’ standard of living.

Private sector and reform implementation

In its report, the Bank affirmed that achieving sustainable growth requires strong institutions, effective regulations, macroeconomic stability, and an inclusive environment that empowers women to participate more effectively in economic activity.

The report clarified that the Egyptian economy is capable of achieving an average annual growth rate of about $6\%$ and creating approximately $2.3$ million job opportunities annually.

This goal relies on a leading role for the private sectorin economic activity, the implementation of the State Ownership Policy Document, and the acceleration of the divestment program agreed upon with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) within the current economic reform program.

The Bank also affirmed in its report that the private sector will bear the heaviest burden in achieving the growth target and creating more jobs in higher value-added sectors. This is especially true since the private sector already generates approximately $75\%$ of the total GDP and employs over $80\%$ of the working population, making it the natural engine for sustainable employment and growth.

Hurdles: Finance access and SOE competition

Nevertheless, there remains an urgent need for further structural reforms to realize the private sector’s full potential. Access to finance remains limited, with private sector credit representing less than $30\%$ of the GDP, compared to about $47\%$ in lower-middle-income economies and $135\%$ in upper-middle-income countries.

The report noted the substantial number of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs)—$561$ companies across approximately $18$sectors. While the $2022$ State Ownership Policy Document introduced deep reforms, the widespread presence of these companies could pose a significant challenge to fostering competition and innovation. Furthermore, trade and logistical barriers represent substantial constraints on the competitiveness of Egypt’s exports and the growth of the private sector.

Enabling the investment climate

The World Bank report suggests that easing restrictions—through clear regulations, improved access to land, labor, and capital, and increased transparency—will enable Egypt to enhance its investment climate and unleash the full job creation potential driven by the private sector.

The World Bank also emphasized that several initiatives and programs adopted by the Egyptian government can help its economy achieve this goal, such as the “Digital Egypt” program, which aims to expand online business registration, electronic signatures, and electronic payments.

Meanwhile, the continuous modernization of customs procedures is gradually contributing to reducing the time required for releasing goods—dropping from $16$ to $8$ days so far.

The World Bank report maintains that complementary measures to expand the availability of financing for small, micro, and medium enterprises (SMMEs), enhance the allocation of industrial land, and modernize technical and vocational training will also be essential for generating more employment opportunities.

Success stories and the push for higher value jobs

In this context, the report highlighted several success stories supported by the World Bank Group in Egypt, including the Entrepreneurship Stimulation for Job Creation Project. This project provides financial assistance—such as debt financing and equity investments—to help these companies secure capital funding.

Regarding the provision of future jobs and higher added value, the World Bank believes that the jobs of tomorrow must be better than the jobs of yesterday.

However, over the past two decades, most new jobs in Egypt have been concentrated in sectors that, despite their importance, are characterized by “low added value” and are generally non-tradable, such as construction, retail trade, and transport.

The report also pointed out that the growth witnessed in recent years in the non-petroleum manufacturing sector—including textiles, pharmaceuticals, food manufacturing, electronics, and automotive industries—has successfully provided more job opportunities with higher added value.

Similarly, the renewable energy sector has emerged prominently as Egypt progresses toward the green transition. The information technology and digital services sector has also seen rapid growth in parallel with the ongoing digital transformation.

Furthermore, the healthcare sector has shone, demonstrating a tangible response to population growth and increasing demand. Finally, the tourism sector continues to play a more vital role by capitalizing on Egypt’s rich cultural heritage and natural wealth.