BUDGET WATCH- House committee loosens state purse strings with EGP 7.3 bn of additional allocations in FY2019-2020 state budget: The House of Representatives’ Planning and Budgeting Committee has allocated an additional EGP 7.3 bn across a number of sectors in FY2019-2020, committee sources said. The Health Ministry will receive an extra EGP 2 bn for health treatment programs, the education sector will receive EGP 1.2 bn, and the Agriculture Ministry will get an additional EGP 2.5 bn.

The committee is expecting to approve north of EGP 20 bn in extra spending allowances by the time the horse-trading over the draft budget comes to an end. The committee, which began the discussions earlier this month, is expecting to receive reports from several other parliamentary committees this week, and begin discussing them following the Eid El Fitr break. Committee-level approval is required for the draft to make it to the general assembly for a final vote, ahead of being ratified by President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. The new fiscal year begins on 1 July.