The Ismail government signed off on the executive regulations to the Civil Service Act during its weekly meeting on Thursday, according to a Cabinet statement. Cabinet also okayed six agreements between the Egyptian General Petroleum Company and unnamed IOCs for oil exploration in the Western Desert. Other key decisions taken during the weekly meeting include:

• Approved term limits for the chairmanship of the Egyptian Exchange that would limit any one EGX head to two four-year terms.
• Approved a draft bill that would change licensing requirements and regulations on the operations of retail stores;
• Ratified a presidential decree to exempt CDM Smith from requirements on Egyptian contributions to the company’s capital and allow it to construct tunnels under the Suez Canal;
• Approved establishing the Supreme Council for Administrative Development;
• Granted preliminary approval to an MoU on financial and technical cooperation with the UAE to assess budget reforms;
• Approved a cooperation agreement with Cyprus to protect cultural artefacts;
• Approved amendments to the Antiquities Protection Law;
• Approved a presidential decree to pardon prisoners in honor of Eid Al Fitr and the 25th anniversary of the 1952 revolution on 23 July.