LEGISLATION WATCH- The executive regulations of the SMEs Act should get the House of Representatives’ final approval at the end of November, Trade Minister Nevine Gamea said, according to Al Shorouk. The recently-ratified law includes tax and non-tax incentives to support SMEs to join the formal economy. Those include tax discounts at a rate of 1% of the total growth in sales a single SME manages to achieve in a given year, Gamea said yesterday. Once out, the regs will help bring the parallel, informal economy into the light to contribute to formal GDP growth, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said last week.

In other legislation news, a planned bill to set up a new body to draw up a nationwide health strategy was the topic of discussion in a meeting yesterday between senior officials including Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly and Health Minister Hala Zayed, according to a cabinet statement. The so-called national council, which will report directly to the president, will coordinate with all parties related to the healthcare sector, including the ministry, hospitals, law enforcement, and the private sector, the statement said without going into details.