Egypt’s Minister of Health and Population Khaled Abdel Ghaffar ordered an investigation into a fire that engulfed the intensive care department at Sidi Salem Central Hospital, in Kafr El-Sheikh governorate. Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population, stated that the fire broke out on Tuesday, in the nursing room inside the intensive care unit. Following the incident, the hospital administration, in coordination with the Ambulance Authority and the Central Administration for Urgent Care, evacuated 27 patients and transferred them to Desouk General Hospitals and Al-Obour Health Insurance, and Kafr El-Sheikh General Hospital, all of whom are receiving the necessary medical care. Abdel Ghaffar added that a female patient, one of the sick cases, who was receiving medical service in the care of Sidi Salem Hospital, at the age of 68, died in intensive care, two hours after she was transferred to an evacuation hospital, where her health condition was unstable, and she was suffering from a brain stroke. He also emphasized raising the state of readiness in all hospitals in the governorate, and the availability of all medicines, blood groups, plasma and all supplies, with continuous follow-up from the Minister of Health and Population.

CAIRO – 13 July 2023: Egypt and Ethiopia agreed to reach a final agreement on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in a period of four months, according to a joint statement by both countries issued following a bilateral meeting between President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Thursday. The two leaders discussed means to overcome the current stalemate in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) negotiations. Egypt and Sudan have been calling on Ethiopia to sign a legally-binding agreement to ensure the preservation of their water interests and people’s rights. However, Ethiopia has rejected the signing of such a deal and has continued its dam filling and operation plans over the past years. Ethiopia is also preparing to implement the fourth filling of the dam’s 74-billion-cubic-metre reservoir during the coming period despite the two countries’ objection.

(Reuters) - FIFA will pay out $209 million to clubs whose players competed at last year’s World Cup finals in Qatar, world football’s governing body said on Thursday. FIFA will pay a daily amount of $10,950 for each of 837 footballers at the World Cup, regardless of how many minutes they played during the tournament. This is an increase from the $8,530 that FIFA paid per player at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. For Qatar, a total of 46 English clubs will be the largest recipients with a combined total of $37,713,297, followed by clubs from Spain, Germany, Italy and France. Under the agreement signed earlier this year by FIFA and the European Club Association, $355 million will be distributed to clubs under the programme for the 2026 and 2030 editions of the World Cup.

Egypt hosts a summit today in Cairo on resolving the ongoing crisis in Sudan. The nearly 3-month battle for controlEgypt hosts a summit today in Cairo on resolving the ongoing crisis in Sudan. Though Egypt is seen as the main foreign supporter of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), this marks its first official foray into the conflict as an advocate for diplomacy. As Sudan’s neighbors respond to roughly 700,000 Sudanese refugees, international concerns continue to mount over the potential for the conflict to turn regional. While the international community may applaud the regional dialogue, it is unlikely the summit will result in concrete steps towards peace in Sudan.

About 4 million landline customers with Telecom Egypt were converted to the prepaid billing system, instead of the quarterly billing system, according to sources. The sources added that after completing the transfer of customers to the new system, customers will be on a single operating system, which will support the company’s approach to provide integrated products. Telecom Egypt making its landline services prepaid will solve the problem of pending money. With prepaid services, landline will be cut off once the credit amount is spent. Telecom Egypt said that the prepaid billing system will allow customers to follow up on their consumption.

The Egyptian government plans to sell its entire share (32.9%) in Al-Ezz Dekheila Steel Company (EZDK). The sources indicated that the Al-Ezz Steel Group owns about 64% of the Al-Ezz Dekheila Steel Company. Al-Ezz Dekheila will buy its shares in a process similar to buying treasury shares. The share of Al-Ezz Dekheila jumped 20% on the stock market on Tuesday, with a turnover of EGP 10.6m, on 10,800 shares. Al-Ezz Dekheila Steel Company turned to a loss of EGP 2.35bn during the first quarter of this year, compared to a net profit of EGP 1.19bn in the first quarter of 2022.

Egypt - The British company Actis has reached a preliminary agreement with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt to acquire the wind power plant in Gabal El-Zeit, which is included in the government’s IPO programme, consisting of 32 companies, sources revealed to Daily News Egypt. The sources said that Actis’ bid on the 580-megawatt station was one of 4 serious bids that Egypt received from local and international companies, including Siemens Gamesa and Orascom, in addition to another offer from an Italian company. The sources added that the final procedures will start after the official announcement from the government. The project, which was implemented in cooperation with the Spanish government, consists of 3 stations: “Gabal Al-Zayt 1” with a capacity of 240 megawatts, “Gabal Al-Zayt 2” with a capacity of 220 megawatts, and “Gabal Al-Zayt 3” with a capacity of 120 megawatts. In a related context, the British direct investment company Actis and Edra Power Holdings renewed their interest in purchasing the Beni Suef power station, southern Cairo.

CNN — Flash floods and landslides caused by heavy rain in northern India have killed at least 41 people since the weekend, according to local authorities. Sukhu said Himachal Pradesh has committed $121,000 to rescue operations and is deploying six helicopters to help. Further rain is forecast in both states, though the Indian Meteorological Department says it is expected to ease. Money Sharma/AFP/Getty Images“Isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall” is forecast for the northern regions of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh until the end of the week, the department said Sunday. The downpours forced school closures across the region at the start of the week with many still shut by Wednesday.

CAIRO - 11 July 2023: Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbouly, announced that Egypt has signed contracts with the private sector to sell state-owned institutions worth $1.9 billion under its privatization program. Earlier this year, the Prime Minister announced that 32 state-owned companies will be sold for strategic investors and listed on EGX within the coming year. The IPO program is expected to increase the flow of the hard foreign currency into Egypt, expand the ownership base of state-owned companies, and maximize the contribution of the private sector in the economy. Madbouly announced that the government had received $1.65 billion for shares sold of state-owned entities, and the rest was in EGP. This includes the Telecom Egypt transaction, where a 9.5% stake in state-owned Telecom Egypt, raising more than EGP 3.7 billion, which accounts for $121 million.

CAIRO - 11 July 2023: The Lebanese Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Abbas Hajj Hassan hailed Egypt for becoming the second exporter of cirtus worldwide. Minister Hassan was speaking in a TV show on Cairo News Channel, where he said that although Egypt imports goods, it has become self sufficient and exports goods as well. The Lebanese Minister said that his country cannot import what its citizens eats, but it must have a minimum food basket inside Lebanon, such as: wheat, legumes, white meat, and others. Regarding the support system in the agricultural sector, he said: “Before 2019, there was support, but it was random. "We have a strategy in the Ministry of Agriculture and partnerships, and I am talking about European partnerships, global partnerships and Arab partnerships," he said.

The Al-Ahly Sporting Club on Monday officially secured the Egyptian Premier League title for the 43rd time in its history. Ahly announced its win after Ceramica Cleopatra FC defeated Pyramids FC, the runner up, with two goals to one, during their match on Monday evening in the 33rd round of the Egyptian League. Ahly tops the Egyptian Premier League standings with 75 points and needed only two points to be officially announced winner for the title. Second-placed Pyramids FC stumbling against Ceramica Cleopatra FC gave the Red Castle the 43rd league title in its history. Ahly is preparing for a strong confrontation against its rival, Zamalek Sporting Club on Thursday evening, in the Premier League competitions this season.

The official gazette published on Monday two decrees No. 2514 of 2023 and No. 2515 of 2023, which were issued by Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly. The two decrees are related to establishing the holding company for marine industries along with transforming two companies owned by the Suez Canal Authority to companies affiliated to the public business sector. The two companies are Canal Mooring & Lights Company along with Port said For Engineering Works & Naval Constructions Co.

CAIRO - 11 July 2023: Minister of State for Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates' Affairs Soha Gendi on Tuesday hailed the distinguished relation between Egypt, India and Pakistan, as well the historic bonds that should be taped into promoting cooperation and exchanging the know-how. The minister was addressing a virtual meeting, held via the video conference technique, within the framework of “An Hour with the Minister” initiative, with the participation of some 30 notable Egyptian expat figures in India and Pakistan. The meeting was attended by Assistant Emigration Minister for Communities Affairs Amr Abbas, Egypt's Ambassador to India Wael Hamed, Deputy Head of the Egyptian Mission to Pakistan Ambassador Sameh el Ghamrawy, along with a galaxy of state representatives. Gendia asserted that listening to Egyptian expats across the globe tops her agenda, noting that meetings have been held with Egyptian communities in more than 40 countries, so far. A total of 1,000 Egyptian nationals living abroad have registered to attend the fourth edition of the Egyptian expatriates' conference, which will kick off on July 31st, the minister said.

The Egyptian government has raised $1.9bn from its Asset Monetisation Programme, according to Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly. He explained that the government intends to use the proceeds from the Asset Monetisation Programme to support the private sector in various economic activities, as well as to increase Egypt’s foreign currency resources. Egypt’s Minister of Planning Hala El-Said also spoke at the press conference, providing more details about the Asset Monetisation Programme. The contract for these stakes was awarded to the Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company (ADQ) for $800m. In June, Egypt appointed International Finance Corporation (IFC) as the strategic advisor for the government’s Asset Monetization Programme, which will focus on harnessing private capital and know-how to manage state-owned assets.

CAIRO - 11 July 2023: Climate experts have warned that seven Arab countries, including Egypt, will witness a significant rise in temperatures, with an increase of around 5 degrees until the end of this week. Climate maps indicate that a hot mass coming from Asia is expected to affect the Levant, Egypt, Iraq and northern Saudi Arabia, as of the end of this week. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed that the summer of this year recorded the highest temperatures in 136 years. Last week, the International Meteorological Organization said that last Monday recorded the highest average temperature in history. Several regions in Algeria, Iraq, Kuwait and Oman also recorded increasing temperature that reached 50 degrees.