Egypt set to receive $500 million from Germany to support the economy

Egypt is set to receive $500 million from Germany to support the economy.

According the Egyptian ministry of investment and international cooperation, the funds will be used to support the ongoing economic reform programme as well as boost the SME sector.

In a statement the ministry said $250 million would be used to support economic reforms while the other half would be use to support micro-enterprises and small and mediums sized enterprises.

The support will come in form of grants and concessional funds, a government official told Reuters.

Egypt has implemented a string of reforms that have helped drive the Egyptian pound up more than 10 percent to the dollar and easing a foreign currency crisis.

In mid- February, the country also merged some of it key ministries as part of the reform plan.

The reforms are part of a $12 billion loan package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed in November last year.

The north African country has faced major economic challenges since the 2011 uprising that ousted its long- time ruler, Hosni Mubarak.