Egypt expects the remaining 4 billion euros ($4.66 ‍billion) of ‍a previously announced 5 billion macro-financial ​assistance package from the European Union to ⁠be disbursed in three tranches by 2027, ⁠Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty ‌said on Thursday.

Speaking at a press conference in Cairo alongside ⁠the EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas, Abdelatty said Egypt hopes the first tranche, worth 1 billion euros, will be ⁠transferred in the coming ​days, after Cairo completed its fifth and sixth programme reviews ‍with the International Monetary Fund.

The EU announced ​in 2024 a 7.4 billion euro ($8.1 billion) funding package for Egypt, including 5 billion euros in concessional loans. Egypt received the first 1 billion euro tranche in January.

The package also includes investments and grants, and was partly a response to Egypt’s worsening ⁠financial position following the Gaza ‌war, Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and the economic fallout from ‌the war ⁠in Ukraine. ($1 = 0.8577 euros)

(Reporting by Alexander Dziadosz, ⁠Ahmed Elimam, Editing by Alexandra Hudson)