Private sector gets green light to generate, distribute electricity

TL;DR

• Amendments allowing private-sector participation in electricity generation + distribution enacted
• Bright Star military exercises with U.S. on deck for 2016, USN could back Perry-class frigate upgrade or replacement
• Supreme Elections Committee starts laying groundwork for House of Reps elections
• New Egyptian Accounting Standards handed down by Salman
• KSA supermarket chain Panda looks to expand into Egypt
• Export subsidy fund could grow after all
• It’s Ramadan’s weirdest ad campaign, but 57357 Pediatric Cancer Hospital still deserves support
• King Salman shuffles his court — again

Please note that the limitations of coding for 6.02×10^23 combinations of email clients, operating systems and hardware devices mean TL;DR won’t work for everyone. It does, however, work reasonably well on our website, and we’ll be rolling our new code later this week to improve the functionality further.

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TODAY

It’s our 200th issue of Enterprise this morning. Help us celebrate by forwarding on to a friend — or emailing us the names and email address of some colleagues you think might want to be added to the list?

That Greek agreement they announced yesterday a couple of hours after we released? It’s far from the end to the Grexit drama. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras faces an exceptional challenge in getting lawmakers to sign off on the sequestration of EUR 50 bn in assets for privatization, debt repayment and the recapitalization of Greece’s beleaguered banks. That has to be done by tomorrow if formal talks on a three-year, EUR 86 bn bailout package are to start by week’s end. The FT says Syriza is set to rebel over the ‘reforms’ they have spent six months fighting tooth-and-nail, with Tsipras likely to have to rely on the opposition to pass the measures. The WSJ has until now ceded the lead on Greek coverage to the FT, but stepped it up over the last few hours with a package of stories that looks angles including a to-the-point explainer on what the agreement really entails; an overview of how the negotiations unfolded; and a look at why many economists think the third bailout is unlikely to work any better than did the previous two.

No final agreement had been reached between the P5+1 and Iran as of the early hours of Tuesday morning, although according to the White House, there could be an announcement later in the morning. Perhaps the most important sticking point of all remains the ability of inspectors to make unannounced visits. The Iranians have instead offered that such inspections go through an Iranian committee for approval first, which could naturally give them time to relocate any equipment and or materials to a different site before permitting inspectors to examine a particular facility. For a comprehensive look at the issues, Simon Henderson of the Washington Institute and Olli Heinonen of the Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs updated in March their 50-page report ‘Nuclear Iran: A Glossary,’ (pdf).

After nine years and a 4.9 bn km journey, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft will finally arrive at the dwarf planet of Pluto on Tuesday. New Horizons is already sending back the first images of Pluto, and the quality of those images and other data will dramatically improve upon conclusion of its mission on Tuesday.

When do we eat? Iftar will be at 6:59pm today, while the cut-off for sohour will be at 3:22am, according to Islamic Finder.

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING THIS WEEK

The first day of Eid will be Friday, 17 July, per calculations by the National Astronomy and Geophysics Research Institute. We’re still waiting for word from Cabinet or the CBE on the small matter of whether we’ll have Monday off to replace the first day of the Eid, as often happens when day one falls on a Friday. The front page of Al-Ahram does, however, go a little overboard in trying to convince us all that the Mahlab government is ready for Eid, promising that traffic will be smooth, the lights (and A/Cs) will stay on, and that security will be tight.

LAST NIGHT’S TALK SHOWS

On the occasion of Laylat El Kadr, Amr Adeeb hosted celebrity Sheikh Khaled El Guindy for the annual Al Kahera Al Yawm Ramadan Telethon. Dressed in white from head to toe (kaftan, turban, glasses and wrist watch), El Guindy talked nonstop about the virtues of prayer and zakat on the holy night. As donations poured in from inside and outside Egypt, El Guindy prayed individually for some of those who made larger donations. In the first two and a half hours of the program, they collected close to EGP 4 mn. The donations will go towards the medical treatment of cases that have been identified by Al Kahera Al Yawm.

** READ ENTERPRISE IN ARABIC **

The beta edition of Enterprise Arabic is now available. Sign up here without charge. We give you just about everything you need to know about Egypt, in your inbox Sunday through Thursday before 7am CLT, and all we ask for is your name, email address and where you hang your hat during business hours.

SPEED ROUND

President ratifies electricity law allowing private sector participation, executive regulations to be released within six months: President El Sisi signed into law amendments to legislation governing power generation and the national electricity authority on Sunday, as reported by Al Shorouk and Egypt Independent, opening the door for private-sector involvement in the generation and distribution of electricity. The law was originally approved by the Cabinet in February 2015, and in June we cited Al Borsa as saying that the ratification was days away, quoting an unnamed official from the electricity ministry.

Bright Star military exercises with U.S. could be back on the agenda, top U.S. Navy officer confirms: Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jon Greenert visited Egypt this past weekend, according toDefense News, to “re-establish the relationship with the head of the Egyptian Navy … They’ve been doing well out here under the circumstances given the dynamics of the country.” The admiral also spoke of Egypt’s role in the operations in Yemen, stating that two of Egypt’s Perry-class frigates just returned from four months of patrol in the Red Sea where they “were conducting maritime interdiction operations, interdicting ships going into Aden … These are not easy operations.”

… With regards to upgrading Egypt’s navy, given that the US Navy is set to soon decommission its Perry-class frigates, Greenert said: “We discussed the possibility … but we didn’t talk details. They would like to upgrade the Perrys they have. What is unclear to me is if their intent is to modernize or replace.” As for Bright Star, the joint military exercises conducted between Egypt and the United States every two years, with the last such exercise having been held in 2009 due to Egypt’s political transition. Greenert said that discussions are ongoing to revive the exercises in 2016. Both the International Business Times and the Military Times note also the increase in Russian relationships with Egypt, particularly in the joint exercise Friendship Bridge.

While President El Sisi ratified the election law regarding voting districts on Thursday, there remain two other amended laws which require ratification before elections can proceed: A 1956 law on the exercise of political rights and a piece of legislation dating to 1972 regulating the performance of parliament. Both await ratification by the President, as per El Watan. Cabinet approved both pieces of legislation last week, as reported by Ahram Online. The Supreme Elections Committee apparently thinks the last two pieces will be ratified soon: It convened yesterday under chairman Ayman Abbas, head of the Cairo Court of Appeals, to begin hashing out a plan to take the nation to the polls to elect a House of Representatives.

Hisham Geneina: New decree does not authorize my removal: The head of anti-corruption agency Central Auditing Organization (CAO) told AMAY that the recently-issued decree which affirmed the President’s right to remove the heads of four independent bodies does not apply to him, as reported by Egypt Independent. Geneina stated that the head of the CAO can only be removed with the head’s consent and an official letter of resignation. Geneina’s removal is being held as the likely impetus for the decree according to media speculation. Egypt Independent also notes that Geneina has previously clashed with Justice Minister Ahmed al-Zend over the capping of judge’s salaries.

Execs at state-owned banks will receive their compensation in full retroactively following court decisions exempting them from the salary cap on public sector wages, sources tell Amwal Al Ghad. Included under the measure would be those who resigned their positions after the cap’s imposition; they would be eligible to receive payment of what they should have earned prior to their leaving government service. Banque du Caire, the National Bank of Egypt, Export Development Bank of Egypt, and Housing and Development Bank all had court decisions strike down the state-imposed restriction on how much they can pay their employees.

Amendments to the Egyptian Accounting Standards have been ratified by Investment Minister Ashraf Salman. The amendments are the first to the standards since 2006. Ahram Gate has a summary of the changes to the code.

Mohamed Alabbar wants state’s stake in new Administrative Capital to close at 20%, not 24% as previously discussed, Al Borsa reports. The Ministry of Housing has been unable to reach an agreement with Alabbar’s Capital City Partners since they signed an MoU at the Egyptian Economic Development Conference (EEDC) in March. The advisory committee tasked with drafting contracts has asked for a grace period to present Alabbar’s demand to Ministry of Housing. Housing Minister Moustafa Madbouli had previously said the State’s 24% ownership was more than the allowed maximum of 15-20% for any project to which the state’s contribution is only the land. The New Urban Communities Authority allocated EGP 5 bn from the new budget to supply the Administrative Capital site with infrastructure.

Saudi supermarket chain Panda considers expanding in Egypt: Panda, the Saudi supermarket chain, is considering expanding into Egypt with the roll out of 16 outlets, Supplies Minister Khaled Hanafy said. The company is looking to open up stores in Cairo, Alexandria, and Dakahlia, according to the minister, in addition to up to six stores in the Greater Cairo Area. (Read in Arabic)

It’s all but over now for NTRA chief Hisham El Elayly: The CIT Ministry has found a suitable candidate to replace El Elayly, the head of the embattled National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority.Sources claim the Ministry is now just finalizing a background check on their chosen candidate, which Al-Malreports is Mostafa Abdelwahid. El Elayly’s tenure at the helm of NTRA technically ends on 17 July. CIT Minister Khaled Negm told Al Shorouk that the longest-serving deputy chairman at NTRA will lead the organization in the interim until a full-time appointment is sorted. El Elayly appears to be shaping his legacy with remarks made at the NTRA’s recent iftar, in which he discussed how the authority has toughened penalties on mobile operators and generated more revenues for the state during his tenure.

Reduced infrastructure rental prices will benefit Telecom Egypt, Pharos report says: A much anticipated report commissioned from Pharos Holding by MCIT reportedly confirms that cutting the price charged to internet service providers (ISPs) for use of infrastructure owned by TE and its subsidiaries will actually benefit the fixed-line monopoly, Al Mal reports, citing a source at the ministry. Al Borsa offers an even deeper dive into the report, for those so inclined. The story doesn’t make clear the logic, but we’re presuming that it’s a volume play in light of CIT Minister Khaled Negm’s drive to cut prices by 30% or more this year to add 1.5 mn new customers — and clamp down on theft of internet access in the process. More subscribers would also allow TE to make better use of the fiber-optic cables it is now laying in high-demand areas. The source tells Al Mal that new prices for infrastructure use should be ready for signature within days, with the move ultimately adding EGP 100 mn to TE’s top line.

Egypt’s natural gas production is falling naturally by 1.3 bcf annually as well productivity falls, a source at EGAS told Al Ahram. Egypt is using its agreements to import LNG account for the shortage in production and with new production coming on-stream, the gap between demand and supply is expected to be bridged gradually and disappear by 2020. The source urged the government to expedite the process switching power stations run on coal, which would help reduce the demand for natural gas.

Cabinet studying overhaul of Workers’ University: The Mahlab government will shortly receive a study on the potential restructuring of Workers’ University, a process expected to take about six months from the time it has a green light from Cabinet. The study has received stamps of approval from the Egyptian Federation of Trade Unions (EFTU) and the Worker’s University as well as a ministerial committee headed by Minister of Manpower Nahed Ashri, Al Mal reported. President Abdel Fattah El Sisi ordered the study after the Supreme Council for Universities decided in April to stop accepting new students as of this fall, according to earlier press reports. EFTU opposed the decision at the time, saying Workers’ University benefits low-income earnings, helping prepare them for entry to the workforce. An estimated 35,000 students study at 11 campuses nationwide.

Cabinet’s Economic Committee is in the process of reviewing its export subsidy program, said Trade and Industry Minister Mounir Abdelnour, suggesting that the total earmark to support exporters could grow beyond the currently budgeted EGP 2.6 bn. (Read in Arabic)

Swiss Investigation into Qatar World Cup bids unearths more suspicious transactions: An ongoing corruption probe into Qatar and Russia’s World Cup bids has expanded to 81 suspicious transactions from an initial 53. The investigation started in May when Swiss prosecutors seized files from FIFA’s headquarters. The Swiss public prosecutor has said that the investigation may take months or even years to conclude. (Read)

***
A MESSAGE FROM PHAROS HOLDING

Amid global price slump, 2Q earnings will be telling for Juhayna
Against a backdrop of plummeting international dairy product prices, Pharos Research has reiterated its concerns over Juhayna’s valuation, sighting trouble ahead for Egypt’s top dairy and juice producer. International dairy prices hit a six-year low at the Global Dairy Trade (GDT) Auction on July 1, a bimonthly auction established by New Zealand’s Fonterra Group that is considered a reference for the segment’s prices worldwide. With the market oversupplied and whole-milk powder prices down 10.8% from the auction on June 16 to USD 2,054/ton, the outlook for the industry is negative.

Pharos has set Juhayna’s 2Q15 results — which coincide with Ramadan, the peak season of dairy products — as the key for making a clear judgment call on the stock; Juhayna trades at annualized multiple of 28.9x, which Pharos believes is overstretched given current market dynamics and the fact that the EGP is still expected to devalue further against the USD, meaning the ride ahead may be bumpy. Click here for the full report.
***

EGYPT IN THE NEWS

Headlines on Egypt in the foreign press continued to be dominated by reports on the bombing of the Italian Consulate in Cairo as well as the death of screen legend Omar Sharif.

Life is hard for children trying to make a living on Egypt’s streets, but the struggle is worse for girls: The Guardian’s Patrick Kingsley writes on street children in Egypt and, in particular, girls who dress as boys on the streets to survive. “Boys get complete freedom on the streets — it’s different for girls… I just wanted to be a boy,” one girl told Kingsley, who went on to explain how some girls pose as boys in order to be able to make a living and escape physical assault, “All the privileges that men have – they can have them. They mock the whole idea of gender,” said Amira El Feky, who has researched the topic.

(The story on street kids brings to life news coming out the National Council for Community Development yesterday that President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has ordered his cabinet to tackle the plight of street children ‘immediately.’ The meeting also saw the council pledge to cut the national incidence of hepatitis C infection to the global average by 2018 through a combination of education and the ongoing Sovaldi treatment program

Kia Makarechi writes for Vanity Fair on a network of women who operate underground in Egypt to get female activists who are at risk of arrest out of the country. (Read When women human-rights activists are in danger, it’s women who come to their rescue)

1,552 violations against students this last academic year -AFTE: The Independent highlighted a report released by the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression which claims that the government has actively tried to “repress any oppositional student movement,” that members of the Islamist-led Students Against the Coup are disproportionately represented among those facing charges. The Independent also references a previous article regarding Amnesty International’s call for the release of 19-year old Mahmoud Mohammed Hussein, who has been held for over 500 days in jail without trial or charge. Hussein was arrested on his way home from protesting against both the military and the Brotherhood and was wearing an anti-torture t-shirt at the time of his arrest.

WORTH READING

The United States is seeking a North African country to host a base from which to launch drone strikes into Libya, according to Adam Entous and Gordon Lubold of the Wall Street Journal, speaking to unnamed American officials. The potential candidates would obviously be Egypt, Tunisia and or Algeria. “So far, none of the North African countries that could offer access to a base have agreed to do so, according to senior U.S. officials. Governments in the region see Islamic State as a threat but are worried that the group will target them more squarely if they agree to host the American military.” (Read U.S. wants drones in North Africa to combat Islamic State in Libya, paywall)

WORTH WATCHING WHAT THE **** AM I WATCHING?

The 57357 Pediatric Cancer Hospital’s recent television advertisement is being accused of being a Masonic plot, allegedly containing imagery and inciting / sending hidden messages that prompted the bombing of the Italian Consulate. Because, obviously, the people who want to try to get you to donate to save the lives of children dying from cancer clearly stand to benefit from acts of terror.(Watch in Arabic with English subtitles, running time: 1:35, H/t Marlyn T.)

Setting aside the obligatory, Okasha-esque accusations of Masonic world domination, Vision Advertising has clearly opted for an unbelievably strange artistic direction. The commercial’s purpose is to solicit donations to save children’s lives, which it attempts to do by getting viewers to empathize with a green-skinned little girl whose world all around her is destroyed, before she herself dies. Did the little girl die of cancer? No, she was the cancer, simply living in a microcosm within a cancerous tumor, as the reveal at the end of the ad shows in what is nothing less than an actual laugh-out-loud moment. It certainly qualifies as one of the biggest plot twists of any Ramadan drama this year.

The 57357 hospital has provided healthcare without charge to children with cancer since the hospital’s founding in 2007. Readers wishing to donate may go here for more details.

DIPLOMACY

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with his Italian counterpart, Paolo Gentiloni, in Cairo on Monday, as reported by DNE. Gentiloni visited the damaged consulate building and will meet with his country’s diplomatic staff stationed in Egypt during his visit.

On Sunday, FM Shoukry represented Egypt at the funeral of Saudi Arabia’s former foreign minister, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, in Mecca, expressing condolences on behalf of the nation and the President to King Salman, Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Nayef, and Al-Faisal’s successor Adel Al-Jubeir, according to a statement by the MFA.

ENERGY

Assessment of technical offers for second FSRU complete, EGAS says
Al Bawaba | 12 July 2015
EGAS has finalized assessing the offers presented to supply a second FSRU to Egypt, Khaled Abdel Badie, Chairman of EGAS, told Al Bawaba. The financial assessment will be completed within the next few days, he added. EGAS aims to have the second FSRU delivered this year and have it commissioned for five years. The new vessel will join the Höegh Gallant at Ain Sokhna port, feeding natural gas into the national grid. (Read in Arabic)

Local Development Ministry pilots replacing butane gas with biogas in villages
Al Mal | 12 July 2015
The Local Development Ministry is piloting a project aimed at phasing out the usage of butane gas in Egyptian villages and replacing it with biogas from compost and sewage, Minister Adel Labib said. The project is being piloted in a Beni Sueif village and, if successful, will be expanded nationwide. The project aims at reducing organic waste while also protecting water supplies from being contaminated with sewage along with reducing the consumption of butane. (Read in Arabic)

Egyptian Electricity Transmission Co. completes expansion of transformer stations
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
The Egyptian Electricity Transmission Co (EETC) reported it would complete construction of a distribution substation with an output of 22 kV in the New Ismailia City and have it operational during this month, according to EETC head Ahmed Hanafy. The article goes on to claim that four additional substations will be built at an aggregate cost of EGP 95 mn. Readers, however, are only provided with details on three of the four additional substations, which, according to the article, will service Obour and Suhag and increase the total capacity of the national grid to 30,000 MW from 27,000 MW. (Read in Arabic)

New and Renewable Energy Authority plans five plants
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
The New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) is planning five renewable energy plants in FY 2015-16 with a total output of 400 MW, divided into a 220 MW wind plant in the Gulf of Suez area, a 120 MW wind plant in the Gulf of Suez area, and three solar plants with output of 60 MW each, in cooperation with the French Development Agency, said NREA chief Mohamed Salah El Sobky. (Read in Arabic)

** Further reading in Energy: Former World Bank director of regional programs in MENA, Jonathan Walters, along with researcher Laura El-Katiri, argue in The National for the UAE to take the lead in the fight against climate change. The authors argue that at the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference in December, the UAE should call for the opening up of Europe’s renewable energy markets by their removal of subsidies, coupled with UAE investment in the solar energy industry in North Africa, (specifically Egypt, Morocco and or Tunisia), including the construction of infrastructure such as transmission lines to Europe, in ‘An Arab voice can turn the climate debate.’

INFRASTRUCTURE

Agreement signed with Chinese company to fund the one mn feddan reclamation project
Daily News Egypt | 12 July 2015
The Housing Ministry signed an agreement with a Chinese company to fund the infrastructure works for the one mn feddan reclamation project. While the company was not named, Daily News Egypt said it “was described as a company specialized in the field of infrastructure of the agricultural reclamation projects.” The project, located in West Minya, aims to use land to grow crops while using infertile land for fish-farming, urban housing, and other services. (Read)

Cairo Governorate allocates EGP 2 bn to re-develop informal settlements
Youm7 | 13 July 2015
After a signed protocol between the Ministry of Housing, the Cairo Governorate and SODIC to deliver water to residents in the informal settlement of Ezbet KhairAllah, Cairo Governor Galal Saeed announced that the Cairo Governorate will allocate EGP 2 bn to redevelop informal settlements. Part of the redevelopment plans include establishing water and sewage projects throughout various informal settlements around Cairo. (Read in Arabic)

BASIC MATERIALS & COMMODITIES

Fish prices up 10-30%
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
Food prices are on the upswing ahead of Eid El Fetr, with consumer demand for fish increasing, particularly herring and fesikh going up 10-20%, while imported fish prices are up 20-30% on the back of the devaluation of the EGP, the story claims, not giving comparative periods or explaining how a few points of devaluation are translating to a 20-30 point increase in price. Meanwhile veal prices have gone up due to shortage of stock, while poultry prices went down with demand. (Read in Arabic)

REAL ESTATE & HOUSING

OHD signs agreement with Tara Egypt to manage retail outlets, build clubhouse
EGX Press Release | 12 July 2015
Orascom Hotels and Development (OHD) signed two new contracts for its Makadi destination with Tara Egypt. The agreement, which was signed through Roaya, OHD’s subsidiary, grants Tara exclusive management of existing retail outlets and assigns it a 38,000 sqm plot of land to build the destination’s clubhouse and associated facilities. Tara will have the right to manage the clubhouse and facilities for 15 years for a payment of EGP 15 mn to Roaya and annual payment of EGP 500,000 that increases by 7% annually after the fifth year of the contract. (Read)

Emaar Misr 1H2015 sales up 20% y-o-y
Reuters | 13 July 2015
Emaar Misr’s net sales grew by 20% y-o-y to EGP 3.91 bn in 1H2015, Reuters reported. The increase was driven by growth in Emaar’s Mivida and Marassi projects. The projects saw sales increases of 45% and 40% y-o-y, respectively. (Read)

Civil Aviation Ministry to tender two phases of Airport City
Al Mal | 12 July 2015
The Ministry of Civil Aviation intends to issue tenders for the construction of the first two phases of the Airport City project before the end of July, said Minister of Civil Aviation Hossam Kamal.
Airport City has a total land package of 10 mn sqm, which, upon completion, will comprise various manufacturing, logistics, and commercial hubs. The project’s estimated CAPEX ranges between USD 10-12 bn. (Read in Arabic)

TOURISM

Tourism Ministry considers ending subsidies for Marsa Alam charter flights
Al Shorouk | 13 July 2015
The Tourism Ministry is considering removing subsidies for charter flights to Marsa Alam. The move, according to the head of the Marsa Alam investors’ association, Adel Radi, would “kill” the city. Marsa Alam hotels are already suffering from occupancy rates below 50%, Radi said, cancelling the charter flight subsidies would reduce them further still. He added that Marsa Alam remains at a disadvantage compared to other destinations in Egypt as it is. The city is unable to attract tourists domestically as it is a 12-hour bus ride away from Cairo and domestic flights there remain costly. (Read in Arabic)

TELECOMS & ICT

ITIDA to back local developers
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
In cooperation with the Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center, the Information Technology Industry Development Agency has put in place a new strategy to help grow the market for software development in Egypt. The strategy includes setting up Innovation Centers in all universities throughout the country, as well as risk capital funds. (Read in Arabic)

EMC and Negm to look into cloud based government computing center
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
The EMC’s vice president for MENA and Turkey, Mohamed Amin, announced he intends to meet with Minister of Communication Khaled Negm to put into effect the cloud based government computing center project. Amin also announced EMC had made USD 25 bn in sales last year, highlighting the EMC control 55% of the database solutions market in the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Turkey. (Read in Arabic)

AUTOMOTIVE & TRANSPORTATION

European models worth EGP 2.7 bn in Egypt during 5M2015, out of a total of EGP 12 bn in industry sales
Daily News Egypt | 13 July 2015
The past five months witnessed the sale of 13,200 European cars, out of a total 76,700 cars sold in the Egyptian market, with European automakers holding a 17.2% market share. The Škoda Octavia was the highest-selling European model during the same period, holding a 24.1% share of all European models sold in Egypt, and a 4.1% market share overall. (Read)

Kia studies assembling locally, targets 20% market share by 2020
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
Egypt International Motors (EIM), the official distributor of Kia and Renault in Egypt, have begun studying manufacturing and assembling some Kia car models locally, according to head of the car division at EIM, Khaled Yousef. EIM are supposed to meet with government officials to look into whether an existing factory can be used, or if a new one has to be built specifically for Kia. EIM aims to boost Renault’s market share to 15% and Kia to 20% by 2020, he added.
(Read in Arabic)

Total & CDCM sign to import oil and technical support
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
Total Egypt will sign a 5 year contract with Cairo for Development and Cars Manufacturing (CDCM) on Wednesday making it the first exclusive oil importer for Peugeot. The agreement is part of Total Egypt’s plan to expand in the local market and increase its market share by signing with car companies and manufacturers to become their exclusive oil and technical support importer. (Read in Arabic)

OTHER BUSINESS NEWS OF NOTE

Government affirms farmers’ ownership of disputed land in Daqahliyah
Daily News Egypt | 13 July 2015
The Public Authority for Agrarian Reform supported a claim by the Farmers Solidarity Committee of the Daqahliyah governorate in their dispute with businessman Farid El-Masry, who also claims ownership to the land. The head of the farmer’s group, however, alleged that the Authority cannot prevent the security forces, at the behest of El-Masry, from once again displacing them from their land. DNE briefly charts the tortuous path of land reform in Egypt, noting that Gamal Abdel Nasser’s land reforms were partially undone by Sadat, which has led to land disputes that have lasted years and resulted in violence. Legislation and enforcement by successive administrations have failed to settle some of these disputes. (Read)

EGYPT POLITICS + ECONOMICS

Antiquities Ministry awaiting Cabinet approval on funding securing museums and antiquity sites
Al Mal | 13 July 2015
Antiquities Minister Mamdouh El Damaty submitted the budget for securing antiquity sites throughout the country last week, according to deputy antiquities minister Mohamed Abdel Aziz. The ministry asked for an preliminary sum of EGP 250 mn to secure the sites and museums. (Read in Arabic)

Al-Wafd party calls for renewal of mandate to fight terrorism
Daily News Egypt | 12 July
Al-Wafd Party released a statement calling for a renewal of the President’s mandate to fight terrorism, similar to a call made by the President in July 2013, which at the time and at the present was widely interpreted to mean a mandate to fight the Ikhwan. (Read)

Egypt signs joint declaration with Tunisia and Morocco in scientific research
Al Masry Al Youm | 13 July 2015
Minister of Scientific Research Sherif Hammad signed a joint declaration in scientific research with Moroccan and Tunisian Ministers of Higher Education in Rabat, Morocco, on July 13. The announcement declaration includes cooperation in research between the three North-African countries in energy, food security, health education, agriculture and new technologies. (Read in Arabic)

REGIONAL

Tunisia scrambles to seal border amid growing ISIS threat: CNN reports that “The desert town of Remada in southern Tunisia has suddenly lost 33 of its citizens. They vanished overnight last week and are thought to have crossed the nearby border into Libya, amid a crackdown by the Tunisian authorities against suspected jihadist cells.” CNN quotes the director of the U.N. Working Group on mercenaries, who says, “It was reported that recruiters in these networks are well paid — around USD 3,000 to USD 10,000 per new recruit, according to human skills,” and was “told repeatedly that many foreign fighters are undergoing training in Libya before heading to Syria.”

Morocco arrested eight people suspected of running a Daesh recruitment cell on Thursday, according to AFP. According to a statement by Morocco’s official news agency MAP, the suspects “secured the transfer of dozens of fighters… in coordination with elements operating on the border between Turkey and Syria.” Robert Looney writes on the growing threat posed by Daesh in Morocco on Thursday for FP in a piece titled ‘Morocco is running out of time‘: “While precise numbers are unavailable, between a few hundred and over a thousand Moroccans have been recruited and trained by the Islamic State in Syria. Moroccan authorities fear these radicalized fighters will return to seek further recruits and launch attacks on home soil.” Looney then goes on to assert that “Morocco’s rising poverty, growing youth unemployment, and suppression of peaceful political dissent create a fertile Islamic State recruiting ground.”

Commentary: It beggars belief that analysts continue to attempt to anchor the growing threat of terrorism in the MENA region to the exclusion of political Islam, with no regard to the ideology held by terrorists or to any sort of personal agency for Arabs. This critique is especially confusing with regard to Morocco, whose Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane is himself Ikhwani, and a member of that country’s Justice and Development Party (PJD), which holds the majority of seats in Morocco’s House of Representatives. How much more inclusive is Morocco is supposed to be?

King Salman reshuffles court, again: Saudi King Salman announced a number of royal decrees on Monday, namely: the appointment of Khalid bin Abdulrahman Al-Issa, Minister of State and member of the Cabinet, as Acting Chief of Royal Court, replacing Hamad Bin Abdulaziz Al-Suwailem, who had been made Chief of the Royal Court in April 2015, as reported by the Saudi Press Agency. There was no immediate indication as to what post Al-Suwailem will now occupy. Prince Mishaal bin Abdullah Al Saud was appointed as Governor of Northern Border Region (bordering Iraq), replacing the previous governor, who passed away this month. Prince Mishaal is the son of the late King Abdullah and was the former governor of Mecca before being relieved of his post by King Salman in April. Lastly, Majed bin Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Hogail was appointed as the new minister of housing. Al-Hogail was previously the Deputy Finance Director at SAMA, and former managing director of Rafal Real Estate Development Co. According to The National, “Mr Al Hogail will lead efforts to ease a shortage of affordable housing for mns of Saudis. The government has pledged tens of bns of dollars towards the problem but red tape and difficulties obtaining land have slowed disbursement of the aid and actual construction of homes,” in a piece which goes on to highlight the other individuals that Salman has brought in from the private sector into his administration in an attempt to improve the government’s effectiveness.

Iraq signed a USD 350 mn loan agreement with the World Bank Group to fund emergencyreconstruction in towns recaptured from Daesh. “A third of the [funds] would go toward repairing roads and bridges, with a similar amount allocated to restoring electricity networks, water and sewage,” the Iraqi Finance Minister said. The World Bank is also preparing a separate USD 1 bn loan to help Baghdad with its budget deficit.

** Further reading in Regional: The rise of Christian militias in Iraq, by Florian Neuhof in The National’s Abandoned and betrayed, Iraqi Christians rise up to reclaim their land.

ON YOUR WAY OUT

Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab visited the site of the Italian Consulate in Cairo, where he ordered an immediate start to restoration work, according to Amwal Al Ghad. The consulate was bombed on Saturday in a terror attack claimed by a Daesh affiliate. The PM also instructed Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry to deliver a message to his Italian counterpart letting him know that a full renovation to the building should take no longer than three months.

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi issued a decree on Sunday indicating that a group of inmates will be pardoned on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr and the anniversary of the 1952 revolution, a presidential tradition, as reported by Ahram Online. The pardon will only include prisoners who have been in jail for fifteen years prior to 25 January 2015. As has been the case with recent pardons, no youth activists appear likely to be released.

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