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Wednesday, 3 October 2018

Cabinet signs off on E-payments Act

CABINET WATCH- Cabinet signs off on E-payments Act: The Madbouly Cabinet signed off yesterday on the final draft of the E-payments Act, which is meant to guide Egypt’s transition to a cashless, paperless economy, according to an official statement. The bill — which the House of Representatives should receive during the current legislative term — is expected to serve as a prerequisite for enacting the Finance Ministry’s new billing and payments system that will see it roll out ATMs and point-of-sale (PoS) terminals at which people will be able to pay fees for various government services, as well as introduce a new national debit card. The CBE-drafted act will also grant incentives to anyone paying government service fees electronically, including discounts and possibly rebates, officials previously said.

The cabinet also approved amendments to laws regulating property registration, which make it mandatory for authorities to notify applicants within 30 days of application if their requests have been rejected. The amendments also update the framework for appeal proceedings.

Other items on the cabinet’s agenda yesterday included:

  • Approving a USD 673.2 mn framework agreement between the National Authority for Tunnels and the Export Import Bank of China for the electric railway project that will connect Cairo the new capital; as well as another c. USD 50 mn agreement with the Chinese government for the same project;
  • Approving a USD 1.2 bn agreement with the UN on sustainable development between 2018-2022, which covers economic development, social justice, female empowerment, and sustainable resource management;
  • Signing off on amendments to aid agreements with the US that increase allocations for a judicial support package to USD 124.3 mn from USD 119.7 mn, and a healthcare support package to USD 11.36 mn from USD 6 mn;
  • Approving loan agreements with the Arab Fund for Economic & Social Development worth KWD 70 mn and KWD 40 mn for the development of sewage treatment systems and upgrading the power transmission grid;
  • A green light for a new JV between the Alexandria Port Authority and Suez Canal Authority to build and operate a new multipurpose platform at the Alex Port;
  • Approving the establishment of a land port in the border city of Salloum to facilitate the exchange of goods across the Libyan border.

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