CAIRO — The Egyptian political administration received broad international and Arab support during the “Egypt the Future” economic conference, which was aimed at boosting the country’s economy following political unrest that had negative repercussions on the state budget and led to low growth rates, rising unemployment and a flight of foreign investment. Yet, following the conference held on March 13, the path ahead seems full of challenges when it comes to capabilities for building on the results of the conference and pushing forward with real steps to ensure the Egyptian economy’s recovery.

During the conference, the government announced huge investment projects, in addition to 40 agreements and memoranda of understanding being signed in the electricity, energy, housing, telecommunications and oil sectors. In his concluding speech at the conference, Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb said, “The initial estimate for the total investments that have been agreed upon is $60 billion, including $18.6 billion on funded projects.”

He added, “Egypt received $12.5 billion in support from the Gulf states, which will be directed at projects carried out within a year or two; this is in addition to $5.2 billion in loans and funds with the Ministry of International Cooperation.”

With this media momentum and the huge size of foreign investments brought by the economic conference to the Egyptian market, the Egyptian public seemed enthusiastic. Egyptians are awaiting rapid results and an improvement in living conditions, as citizens still suffer from the deteriorating economic situation and increased rates of poverty, more than four years after Egyptians took to the streets in the January 25 Revolution against the Hosni Mubarak regime calling for “bread, freedom and social justice.”