BEIRUT (AFP) – Rights groups yesterday said an Egyptian request for a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) must require Cairo to expand social protection, tackle corruption and ensure judicial independence.
Seven rights groups, including Human Rights Watch (HRW), also demanded the Washington-based crisis lender tie cash to ensure transparency on the military’s grip on the economy.
“The IMF and Egyptian authorities should not agree to any loan programme that further raises the cost of living without dramatically increasing investment in universal social protection programmes,” the statement read.
Since 2016, the IMF has approved three loans to Cairo totalling USD20 billion, with Egyptians struggling amid soaring inflation, devaluation of the Egyptian pound by half, and tough austerity measures slashing subsidies on essential food.
Last month, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused inflation to surge, Cairo said it would apply for another loan.
A third of Egypt’s 103 million people live in poverty, and nearly the same number are vulnerable to falling into poverty amid soaring prices of basic food.
Despite pressure following previous IMF loans, the groups warned that “progress on badly needed reforms remains elusive”.
As well as HRW, the other signatories were EuroMed Rights, Civil Rights Defenders, The Freedom Initiative, The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, the Project on Middle East Democracy, and the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies.
