Egypt’s House of Representatives will on Monday debate a draft law to reorganize the Future of Egypt Authority for Sustainable Development, following heated committee discussions that introduced substantial changes to the government’s proposal. Opposition lawmakers remain sharply critical, warning that the bill would hand the authority exceptional powers and privileges
The bill would transform the Future of Egypt Authority into a special economic authority reporting directly to the president, giving it broad powers to manage state assets, establish sustainable development zones, and create two new funds, “Nile Pyramids” and “Daem”, to accelerate national projects and expand partnerships with the private sector. Opposition lawmakers say such powers exceed those granted to other economic bodies, raising questions about oversight of the authority and the limits of its mandate.
Fiscal burdens
The Future of Egypt Authority’s relationship with the state treasury has emerged as one of the most contentious aspects of the draft law.
Irene Saeed, head of the Reform and Development Party’s parliamentary bloc, said Article 8, which requires the state treasury to pay the employer’s share of the social insurance contributions owed by the authority, exemplifies what she described as an unbalanced relationship with the state’s finances. “We already have enough burdens,” she said. “We can’t put more pressure on the public treasury.”
The provision comes as economists and analysts continue to warn about Egypt’s rising public debt, even as the government aims to reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio to 78.1% in fiscal year 2026-27 from 81.8% a year earlier.
According to Saeed, the legislative committee amended Article 8 and also removed Article 71, which had stipulated that “the state treasury shall bear the value-added tax, stamp duty, and state development fee... in exchange for assets, rights, or financial returns transferred by the authority to the state treasury.”
In 2023, Egypt abolished all tax exemptions for state-owned entities, including those affiliated with the armed forces, as part of its IMF-backed economic reform program. The move generated 67.4 billion Egyptian pounds (about $1.35 billion) in taxes from previously entities exempted during fiscal year 2024-25.
The proposal has nevertheless revived debate over tax exemptions. “It is unreasonable for the treasury to pay the taxes of an investment entity that generates returns,” Saeed told Al Manassa.
Although lawmakers curbed the authority’s proposed tax exemptions, the draft still grants it exceptional privileges by shielding its revenues from automatic transfer to the state treasury.
Saeed said the legislative committee rejected a proposed amendment to Article 72, which exempts the authority from laws requiring public entities to transfer a specified share of their balances to the treasury. Instead, the article authorizes the president to decide whether up to 20% of the net operating surplus generated by sustainable development zones should be transferred to the treasury. Opposition lawmakers sought to eliminate that ceiling but were unsuccessful.
Bringing the authority under oversight
The Egyptian Social Democratic Party focused its objections on the absence of parliamentary oversight over the transfer of public assets to the authority’s proposed sovereign fund, to be known as the “Nile Pyramids” Fund.
Mahmoud Samy El-Emam, head of the party’s parliamentary bloc, told Al Manassa that the draft law authorizes the president to transfer ownership of any state-owned public funds or assets, whether utilized or idle, to the sovereign fund.
Saeed argued the assets are public property and that any transfer should be clearly justified and subject to parliamentary oversight to ensure transparency and protect public funds.
The legislative committee responded by amending the bill to strengthen parliamentary oversight. It amended Article 26 to require prior approval from the House of Representatives before sustainable development zones can be established or land and facilities within those zones transferred to the authority.
El-Emam described this as “one of the toughest amendments Parliament succeeded in imposing.”
Saeed, however, argued that the authority would still exercise near-total control over the zones, without oversight from any ministry, governorate, or other government body.
Economic concerns and a clash with “competitive neutrality”
Lawmakers also amended provisions they said conflicted with the Constitution.
Mohamed Abdel-Aleem Dawoud, head of the Wafd Party’s parliamentary bloc, told Al Manassa that the legislative committee rewrote Article 28, which authorizes the authority’s board to raise fees within sustainable development zones by up to 5% annually.
He said the original wording violated Article 38 of the Constitution, which stipulates that taxes and fees may only be imposed or amended by law. The revised provision instead caps increases within the limits established by existing legislation.
The committee also filled a gap in the government’s draft by adding Article 29, which specifies how project fees and other dues would be collected and allocated to the authority.
But Saeed said the disagreement over the law is no longer primarily constitutional. “It has become an economic issue because of the broad powers the law grants the authority.”
Those powers include access to government data, management of sustainable development zones that enjoy free-zone privileges including tax and customs exemptions, and the authority to issue licenses and implement projects.
“This expansion of powers fatally undermines the principle of competitive neutrality,” she said. “It contradicts the law’s stated objective of attracting more foreign investment.”
Withdrawal or expanded involvement?
The bill would restructure the Future of Egypt Authority, which was launched in 2017 under the Air Force’s administration, transforming it from an armed forces project into an independent entity.
Its expanding role in acquiring state assets has nonetheless raised questions about the government’s commitment to reducing the state’s role in the economy, a pledge made to the IMF under the current reform program, which is due to conclude later this year.
El-Emam argued that Egypt’s chronic bureaucracy has held back investment, justifying exceptional powers for the authority to achieve results that traditional institutions have failed to deliver.
Dawoud agreed that efficient operations and sound asset management should be the priority and said the draft law could help achieve those goals.
Saeed, however, insisted that the legislation contradicts the government’s stated policy of withdrawing from economic activity. She noted that the authority would remain directly subordinate to the presidency while being exempt from the Civil Service Law and the public sector wage cap.
Saeed warned that the authority’s exceptional privileges could give it an advantage few investors could match, potentially weakening Egypt’s investment climate. “If I’m a domestic or foreign investor, how can I compete with a giant authority that controls all these assets, powers, and data?” she said.
