New Harvard Study Predicts Egypt to Be World's 3rd Fastest Growing Economy Over Coming Decade

Egypt's economy, which has been rapidly growing in the past few years on account of an extensive economic reform program, has been projected in a new study by Harvard Institute for International Development to grow by an average annual rate of 6.8% until 2027, making it the projected third fastest growing economy in the coming decade after India, which came in first in the study with a projected annual growth rate of 7.89%, and Uganda at 7.46%, reports Egypt Independent.

The study was conducted based on the Economic Complexity Index (ECI) of each country, which estimates how well an economy would function based on the diversity of economic activities, exports, and the economy's projected production capabilities. It also factors in the knowledge base available in the economy, and is a reliable predictor of GDP growth and income inequality. Egypt ranked 68th in the ECI, however, along with China and Vietnam, has been cited to have more sophisticated specialised knowledge for an economy of its size, driving it to top the overall ranking after India and Uganda.

The Egyptian Economic Reform program has led Egypt to have one of the fastest growth rates in the world over the past two years. However a recent report by CAPMAS highlighted that despite the growing economy, poverty rates in the country have actually soared to over 30% since 2016, suggesting that the lack of economic inclusivity and income equality remain to be the biggest challenges facing the economy.