Cairo - Mubasher: The Egyptian government's total investments from July 2019 to February 2020 grew by 12% to EGP 90.9 billion, when compared to the year-ago period, Egypt's minister of planning and administrative reform Hala El-Saeed said.

This came during the Egyptian cabinet meeting during which the sustainable development plan for 2020/2021 was adopted in light of the repercussions of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, according to a statement on Thursday.

El-Saeed remarked that Egypt aimed to achieve a growth of 5.6% by the end of the current fiscal year.

However, the economy is expected to record a maximum growth rate of 5.1%, with a slowdown in the third and fourth quarters at 5.2% and 4%, respectively.

The minister added that COVID-19 will have a negative impact on some sectors that focus on food and accommodation services, manufacturing, wholesale and retail, and tourism.

Moreover, the unemployment rate was forecast to decrease to 8.5% by the end of 2020/2021 at the end of the COVID-19 crisis,  but it will negatively be affected if the crisis continues, she further noted.