City Council President Tarek El Baz announced an initiative to prevent the use of plastic in the South Sinai city, Dahab, to protect the environment and marine organisms under the slogan ‘No Plastic’ in an attempt to turn the city into a plastic-free zone. The president said that the South Sinai reserves organized several training courses for hotel workers and tourist resorts to raise awareness of the dangers of plastic and its damage to marine organisms. The city was covered by banners to raise awareness to tourists of the danger of the use of plastic on the beaches. He added that alongside the awareness campaign are several voluntary cleaning campaigns with the help of youth, tourist organizations and diving centers to clean the beaches and the seabed. The South Sinai reserves have launched another initiative in hotels and resorts called “Khali al-Bahar Yetnafes” or “let the sea breathe” for the definition and awareness on the seriousness of plastic. Environmental activist Mohsen Jaafar told ElBalad News that the income of the city Dahab is the based on the environment which attracts tourists and must be preserved. He pointed out that plastic…
Egyptian Football Association Resigns After Shock South Africa Defeat
Hany Abou Rida, the President of the Egyptian Football Association (EFA), announced on Saturday night his resignation from the Presidency of the EFA following Egypt’s shock elimination from its 1-0 defeat against South Africa at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON). Abou Rida, who also called for all members of the EFA to submit their resignation, said that the decision was made despite his belief that the EFA did not do any less than what was required for the national team, providing the team with full financial and technical support. Javier Aguirre, the Mexican manager of the Egyptian football team, and his administrative and technical support were also sacked, announced Abou Rida in a statement. Following Abou Rida’s statement, Ahmed Shobair, the Vice President of the EFA, also announced his resignation. A number of EFA board members also resigned, including Hazem Emam, Ahmed Megahed, Essam Abdel Fattah, Kahled Latif, Deena Al Refai and Seif Zaher. Egypt, which managed to organize the AFCON tournament in just six months, had been expected to defeat South Africa at the Round of 16. However, despite having most of the possession, the Pharaohs suffered a…
Egypt Suffers Defeat Against South Africa, Exit AFCON
Egypt suffered a defeat against South Africa round of 16 after a late goal, kicking Egypt out of the tournament. Thembinkosi Lorch scored the decisive goal five minutes from time in the second half, finishing off the match with 1-0. The stunning elimination marked Egypt’s worst-ever performance as hosts. They twice won the tournament as hosts in 1986 and 2006, losing in the final in 1959 and the semi-finals in 1974. It’s also the second major surprise of this tournament after Morocco lost to Benin on penalties on Friday. South Africa will now meet Nigeria in the quarter-finals after their 3-2 win over Cameroon earlier today. Egypt took the top spot in Group A after finishing the last match with 2-0 against Uganda, yet received criticism for its overall performance. Madagascar and Congo are set to play against each other tomorrow, followed by Algeria and Guinea….
Egypt Announces Project to Digitalize Agricultural Production
Egypt’s Agriculture Ministry in partnership with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) announced a joint project to develop a digital agricultural guiding model as part of the 2018- 2020 National framework program signed by the Egyptian government. In an event organized to launch the project, ministry representatives and agriculture officials explained that digital technology improves efficiency by overcoming the dangers of starvation and achieving food security, given challenges such as rapid population growth and decrease in arable land. The representatives also pointed out that many countries around the world have started to adopt digital agriculture technology, adding that it is time for developing countries to follow the same path. The benefits of digital agriculture include lowering expenses for farmers and reducing waste in production order to rationalize the labor process and ensure a more sustainable production. Digitalization also aids in raising crop yields production by improving the methods of decision-making with better access to information, and improve trade by connecting suppliers to new markets, and enabling new ways for governments to monitor and ensure compliance with standards. The ministry said that it is currently establishing a central information…
Russia’s Old Tale ‘The Overcoat’: A Relevant Analogy for Egyptian Society?
There are times when art sides with the marginalized, unheard of, and oppressed – the little people of society that live and die without anyone’s knowledge, and that often carry boring and colorless lives that are too dull to be shown on billboards or cinemas. Yet in the age of capitalism, advertisements and continuous self-promotion, art is mostly a product owned by the bigger people in the society: the businessmen, the entertainment companies, the managers, and even the politicians. Just recently, ‘The Passage’ (El Mamar) became a box office hit in Egypt, surpassing EGP 30 million in less than two weeks. It traces Egypt’s defeat in the 1967 war and the subsequent War of Attrition, revolving around the lives of the men in the army and the Egyptian society at the time. While the film does a fair effort in portraying the human element of the events – in contrast to the focus on leaders and politicians in most war films – it still does not stray too far from a majority of the works in the industry that shed light on the most heroic or extraordinary characters. Next to…
Egypt Applies Latest Round of Domestic Fuel Subsidy Cuts
Egypt has announced the latest round of fuel subsidy cuts in accordance with the state’s austerity measures, a key pillar of the three-year economic reform program signed with the IMF, which is nearing its end. The new pricing, which officially came into effect at 9 am on 6 July, raises domestic prices between 16 percent and 30 percent. The price of widely used 92 octane grade petrol rose by 18.5 percent to EGP 8 ($0.4825) per litre, instead of EGP 6.75. Lower quality 80 octane rose by 22.7 percent to EGP 6.75 ($0.4071) per litre instead of EGP 5. Higher grade 95 octane fuel rose by 16.1 percent to EGP 9 ($0.5428) per liter and diesel rose by 22.7 percent to EGP 6.75 per litre. The price of cooking gas cylinders rose by 30 percent to EGP 65 for domestic use and EGP 130 for commercial use, according to an official statement by the Ministry of Petroleum. Egypt’s budget for the current fiscal year 2019/2020 recently revealed the reduction of fuel subsidies to EGP 52.96 billion, from EGP 89.07 billion in 2018/2019. According to a report released by the General…
Christie’s Tutankhamun Head Fetches £4.7m Despite Egypt Officials’ Outrage
British auction house Christie’s has sold a 3,000 old stone head sculpture of an ancient Egyptian figure bearing the facial features of Tutankhamun for 4.7 million sterling pounds on Thursday. The statue, whose sale has sparked controversy and outrage, was acquired by an unnamed buyer for £4,746,250 ($5.97m). On the day of the sale, a small group of protesters stood outside the venue to demonstrate against Egypt’s ‘history’ going for sale. Riding the wave of parallel demands for artifact repatriation by Nigeria, Greece, Benin and Ethiopia, Egypt has also reignited its demands for various artifacts from European museums, namely the bust of Nefertiti in the Neues museum as well as the Rosetta stone in the British Museum. The head is supposedly privately owned and has appeared, for the first time on the open market, since 1985. News of the statue’s sale, especially considering who it represents – the famous boy king of the 18th dynasty- sparked outrage on social media where users have expressed dismay that Egyptian artifacts are still privately exploited and bargained. Echoes of criticism have also reverberated from Egyptian officials, namely Secretary General of Egypt’s Supreme Council of…
Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos Visits Hurghada with His Family
Real Madrid’s player and captain Sergio Ramos visited Egypt’s Red Sea hottest destination, Hurghada, along with his family on Monday 1 July to tour the Giftun Islands. Egypt Independent reported that the Spanish defender “will stay in a tourist village owned by Chairman of the Tourist Investment Association of the Red Sea governorate Kamel Abu Ali.” Abu Ali has has been a favored destination by Real Madrid players including Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema as part of promotional tourism campaigns for Hurghada. إستعدادات مدينة “الغردقة” في مصر لإستقبال سيرخيو راموس نجم ريال مدريد، حيث سيقضي اللاعب أجازته هناك رفقة أسرته😍 pic.twitter.com/zKnwx4LUoM — رياضة.كوم (@ReyadaCom) July 2, 2019 In 2018, Ramos injured Egypt’s beloved striker Mohamed Salah during the final match of the UEFA Champions League. This injury excluded Salah from playing in the first match Egypt had in the 2018 World Cup against Uruguay. Ramos was accused by many Egyptian fans of intentionally attempting to hurt Salah, Liverpool’s best player and their main threat, keeping a lock on the Egyptian’s arm as both players fell to the ground causing Salah to hurt his shoulder. The tides were turned following Salah’s…
UN Report Forecasts Egyptian Population to Increase 60 M by 2050
According to recently published UN study, “World Population Prospects 2019: Highlights”, Egypt is expect to experience an annual rise of its population until it increases by 60 million by 20150. The UN study, the 26th round of its kind, focuses on demographic data in a bid to provide a comprehensive overview of global demographic patterns, prospects and trends on a global, regional and national level for 235 countries. It is prepared by the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat. Along with India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Tanzania, the United States and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt’s population growth is expected to make up more than half the projected growth of the global population between 2019 and 2050. It is also expected that by 2027, India will take on the title of most populated country worldwide, surpassing its northern neighbor, China. Overall, by the end of the current century, world population is estimated to each 11 billion, a poignant increase presenting its own sets of challenges. As it currently stands, the most populated country is the Middle East has an annual rate…