FISCAL POLICIES AND EQUITY: THE CASE OF EGYPT’S POST-REVOLUTION BUDGET

Salah El-Sabaa
Ali A. Soliman
British University, Egypt
ABSTRACT
For many decades, the Egyptian budget has suffered from chronic deficit. On the one
hand, expenditures were growing at very high rates. On the other hand, growth of revenues was
sluggish and did not reflect new sources of wealth or income in the economy. Government policy
after the January 2011 Revolution faces many challenges. The popular uprising demanded social
justice and better living standards. The fiscal implications of these demands are daunting. An
expansion of public works, creation of employment opportunities, an increase in minimum wages
and more progressive taxation are all called for. Also, there were persistent demands for a more
equitable distribution of incomes and of tax burdens. This study focuses on two branches in the
Egyptian government: the allocation and the distribution branches.