The House Industry Committee is seeking to make amendments to the Investment Act, said the committee’s Deputy Chairman Mohamed Saad Badrawy. While details on what these changes might be were not provided, the move may be an attempt to grant the Industrial Development Authority (IDA) the sole right to license and grant industrial permits, Al Borsa reports. This would strengthen legislation approved by the cabinet, which would give the IDA that authority in the hopes of reducing the time to obtain industrial permits to 30 days. The committee also plans to question the ministers of industry, investment and environment on delays in obtaining licenses, the continued lack of credit available to SMEs since the declaration of the president’s SME initiative, and delays in implementing projects. These would presumably include the 1,000 factories project. (Read in Arabic)