Good afternoon, wonderful people, and welcome to what we affectionately call almost-THURSDAY. The weekend is almost upon us — but it’s a mad rush to the finish line.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

Egypt’s economy grew at a 5.4% clip in 3Q2021-2022 — its slowest pace yet this fiscal year, as fallout from the war in Ukraine begins to reflect on the economy, according to a cabinet statement. 9M figures show the economy growing 7.8%, bolstered by a solid 1H, which saw 9% growth. The government has now upped its growth forecast for the fiscal year to 6.2%, after having trimmed it in March to 5.7% from 6.4% due to the economic impact of the war in Ukraine.

^^We’ll have more on this story and others in tomorrow’s edition of EnterpriseAM.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

Yesterday’s mass shooting in a Texas elementary school is still topping headlines across much of the international press this afternoon.The Wall Street Journal is reporting further details on the incident as they have emerged, while Reuters takes note of US President Joe Biden’s renewed push to tighten gun laws in the country.

** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

• Some foreign car manufacturers have suspended sales to Egypt after a change to how imports are paid for has left local dealers unable to purchase vehicles, industry sources say.
• Egypt hopes to finalize a fresh assistance program with the IMF “within two months,” Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly told lawmakers yesterday in an address focusing on the government’s response to what he said was the worst global crisis since the Second World War.
• Four miners have landed licenses to explore for gold in the Eastern Desert in the Madbouly government’s latest tender, including Ankh Resources, Sawiris-backed Akh Gold, Canadian miner Lotus Gold, and Marine Logistic.

LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST ON WHAT AI CAN MEAN FOR YOUR BUSINESS. Last month, we explored how the government has made artificial intelligence a national priority. We spoke with the former ICT Ministry’s advisor for AI Sally Radwan about the government’s national AI strategy and how it is being implemented (Part 1 | Part 2).

In another of our podcast roundtables, we sat down with the companies building AI systems in Egypt to get a bird’s eye view on what’s happening in the sector: Who’s adopting it, how they’re going about it, and what challenges they’re facing.

You can catch the episode on our website here (listen, runtime: 44:01), or tune in via Apple Podcasts | Anghami | Google Podcasts | Spotify). Or you can read edited excerpts of our conversation here.

???? CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The Madbouly government will hold public consultations on its privatization plans over three months, according to a cabinet statement out yesterday. “We as a government are ready to hear all opinions and approaches because our objective is the interest of the country and the advancement of the economy,” PM Moustafa Madbouly said at a Cabinet meeting.

We got our first look at its policy document last week: The government intends to fully withdraw from as many as 79 industries over the next three years as part of plans to restructure the economy in favor of the private sector, according to a draft copy of its state ownership policy document obtained by the local press last week. The final version of the document is expected to be published before the end of this month.

The Fin Expo Egypt is kicking off tomorrow and will run until Thursday at the Intercontinental Citystars. The expo will feature over 25 companies exhibiting their fintech products and services with 3k visitors expected.

El Gouna International Squash Open 2022 will kick off on Friday and run until the following Friday, 3 June. The competition will feature some of Egypt’s top seeds including world #1 Nouran Gohar and world #2 Ali Farag (who just earned the PSA squash championship cup). The prize pool for each of the men’s and women’s competitions is USD 180k.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Expect the mercury to inch up again tomorrow to a high of 36°C before cooling off to a low of 21°C in the evening.

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We have tons more in the pipeline — come help us build new publications. We offer the chance to work in a fast-paced newsroom on a broad range of topics and in a variety of formats. Our goal is simple: To create value for our growing community of 200k readers by telling stories that matter.

We’re looking for editors who want to run publications and teams, editors to help reporters craft stories and talented reporters. Egyptian and foreign nationals alike are welcome to apply. So are job-switchers: If you’re an equities analyst tired of the rat race, we’re a great place to come work.

Apply directly to jobs@enterprisemea.com and mention Patrick in your subject line.

Or hit this link for more information. It’s worth it — trust us.
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