The Egyptian central bank has received $1 billion from the Saudi Arabian government in a move to help Cairo secure a US$3.2bn loan from the IMF, said an Egyptian minister.

According to reports, Egypt has asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other donors for loans to help it plug a balance of payments deficit aggravated by the political and economic turmoil of the last 15 months.

Last year’s Arab spring had kept tourists and foreign investors away, two of Egypt’s main sources of foreign currency, and economists say the country will need a minimum of $11 billion over the next year to stave off a balance of payments crisis and a potential devaluation of its currency.

Before it agrees to the loan, the IMF has told Egypt to come up with an economic programme that has broad domestic political support and to line up additional resources from international donors.

Planning Minister Faiza Abu el-Naga issued a statement pointing out that the Saudi funds had been deposited with the central bank for eight years and that “coordination was on-going” with Saudi Arabia about remaining elements of a previous $2.7 billion aid package.

The Saudi package would provide support for developmental project spanning petroleum products and SMEs to name a few.

Egypt said Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states had pledged billions of dollars in support, but only just US$1 billion actually arrived at the time, with Saudi Arabia and Qatar sending $500 million each.