The Egyptian government's increased spending on road and bridge projects since 2018 has helped reduce traffic-related fatalities in 2020, Planning and Economic Development Minister Hala El-Said said on Saturday.

Deaths from road accidents dropped dramatically by 44 percent in 2019-2020, compared to five percent in 2018-2019, Said said in a statement released by the ministry.

Said said that the value of road investments increased from EGP 14 billion in 2018 to EGP 26 billion in 2019, and EGP 28 billion in 2020.

This brought the number of road deaths down to 7,000 in 2020, compared to 12,000 last year and 13,000 the year before, the minister pointed out.

She added that the country has made a giant leap in infrastructure projects, especially in the transport sector, leading to Egypt jumping up 90 spots in the road quality ranking over the past five years.