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management representatives from the financial, real estate, industrial, consumer and healthcare sectors.The main topics and events highlighted by CI Capital conference in Egypt were; Competitiveness of export-dependent sectors, consumer conditions in Egypt, developments in the natural gas market, and finally, the parliament approval of new investment law; which came among other initiatives for economic reform in Egypt to craft a good investment climate for all investors. The above through providing a multitude of motivating investment incentives, aiming to attract foreign direct investment and increase demand for credit.In Saudi Arabia, the National Transition 2020 program reflects an unprecedented determination by the Saudi government to move towards economic reform. For the first time, shares in state-owned companies were put up for sale, this came after the austerity measures undertaken by the Kingdom to stabilize its public finances and reduce its

governments send a clear message to the international investment community that their openness to economic activities in various sectors is now more than ever”.Hazem Badran, Co-CEO of CI Capital, said: “Saudi Arabia ranks 23rd in the Doing Business report, followed by the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. Saudi Arabia is considered one of the top ten countries implementing reform measures according to the World Bank, so we have very optimistic expectations about this market and the growth of the local economy.”“For Egypt, the government is currently implementing a core restructuring plan, following the completion of the IMF loan deal, as well as another package of development procedures, and is obvious from the increased interest of foreign investors in the Egyptian capital market. Egypt is obviously unleashing its inherent potentials for growth and is moving forward with consolidating the local economy; which is obvious in all recently undertaken economic and fiscal measures. Such measures ranged from floating the Egyptian pound to taking bold measures to overcome the fiscal deficit and increase production of natural gas obtained from the largest gas fields that have been discovered recently. At this point Egypt is intent on using its full capacity of energy resources to attract foreign and Arab investments.

The conference is a real opportunity to draw attention of US, Europe, South Africa and Gulf countries investors and institutions to the Middle East and North Africa.CI Capital launched early this week the first annual investment conference in MENA region, the conference ran for 3 days and ended last Tuesday in Sheraton Miramar Resort El Gouna, Hurghada City.This conference provided a real opportunity for policy makers and companies to showcase and promote investment opportunities in order to attract institutional investors from the US, Europe, South Africa and the Gulf to companies operating in various economic sectors in the Middle East and North Africa, particularly in Egypt and Saudi Arabia.Both, Egyptian and Saudi markets have embarked on a package of bold fiscal reforms at the local economic level. The conference also provides an opportunity for open meetings between investors and different companies, thus strengthening institutional cooperation and providing a platform for exchanging experiences in improving the investment climate and developing the environment for doing business and best practices among the participants in the conference.The conference was attended by more than 90 representatives from various investment institutions with managed assets worth about $ 2 trillion in emerging and primary markets, as well as 115 senior

budget deficit in light of oil prices collapse.The healthcare sector is considered one of the most important growth sectors in the Kingdom and it’s expected that private healthcare providers will provide positive impact regarding these measures as a result of the Government’s spending rationalization program.At the same time, we expect another shift in the next few years in the Kingdom, this shift will make available different opportunities that will in turn replace the economic activities managed by foreigners - as is the case with some Saudi retail companies - which may suffer from lower margins.Commenting on the event, Mahmoud Atallah, Executive Chairman and Vice Chairman of CI Capital, said: “This conference comes at a proper time as governments in different Arab countries are taking a series of serious steps towards implementing comprehensive reforms aimed at sustainable economic growth. By taking such bold measures, Arab

President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi visited Qena province Sunday morning to inaugurate, inspect, and examine a number of projects that totalled 56 in Qena, and other provinces as well. Prime Minister Sherif Ismail as well as the Minister of Defense Sedki Sobhi, Minister of Agriculture Abdel Moneim El Banna, and Minister of Transport and Communications Hisham Arafat accompanied the president during his two days visit. The president kicked off the day by inspecting the wheat crop and harvest of cultivated crops in Al-Marashdah، which nearly measures 50 thousand acres within the project of one and a half million acres. Later Egypt’s president checked another 15

agricultural bodies for export of cantaloupe and for medical and aromatic plants، followed by the opening of Al-Marashdah silos، which has a capacity of 60،000 tons of wheat. Moreover, the delegation reviewed via video conference the development of the Golden triangle project stretched along the province of Qena and the Red Sea.It is worth mentioning that President Sisi granted the town of Marashadah –one of the poorest towns in the governorate of Qena - 1,000 Acres of land, to be distributed among it’s residents - this came after a resident of AlMarashdah approached the president requesting granting his town the land due to their sluggish economic conditions.

On the second day of his visit Sisi inaugurated a number of projects in the provinces of Qena and Sohag, the projects include the 10km Gerga Axis in Sohag; which includes five tunnels and four bridges and connects the Eastern Desert road to the Western road. The project’s estimated cost is EGP 500 million. The President further inaugurated a bridge in Luxor at the cost of EGP 60 million.During his visit to Qena, Sisi criticized the delay in issuing necessary legal procedures that circumvent appropriation of state land - scheduled to be reclaimed - and gave directives to legalize the status of those citizens who managed to reclaim plots after appropriation.

طبع بمطابع دار لل�صحافة

Sisi in Upper Egypt to inaugurate establishment of new development projects

First annual investment conference in MENA sheds light on a multitude of investment initiatives

for about 30 minutes prior to falling in the Sea of Japan, underlining that it could be a new type of missile. Experts quoted by Reuters say the altitude meant the missile was launched at a high trajectory, limiting the lateral distance it travelled. They say if it had been fired at a standard trajectory, it would have had a range of at least 4,000km. The missile was launched from north – western Kusong, and reached an altitude of 2000 km said Japanese sources. Currently we are watching a series of moves that aim for protection, Ruling party sources say Japan is leaning towards choosing the Aegis Ashore missile-defense system over another advanced system called Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD). At a time where the US THAAD system was made operational in South Korea in response to the growing missile threat from North

Korea.The recent missile test follows a series of North Korean missile tests launched this year. Last month witnessed two missile launches and both failed, noting that such actions are banned by the UN. According to Japan’s Nikkei newspaper, Japan’s prime minister said “such launches undertaken by North Korea pose a serious threat to Japan, and are an obvious violation of Security Council resolutions. He further added that such an attitude is totally unacceptable, underlining that it is expected that North Korea will undertake further provocations, explaining that Japan will continue to work with the United States and North Korea and will exert it’s utmost efforts to ensure it’s people’s safety.

After a new president assumed office in South Korea a few days ago, North Korea challengingly carried out another ballistic missile test. The newly elected President Moon Jae, considered the move a “reckless provocation”. According to government officials, Japan is considering a new missile defense system to counter the threat of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, while, US president Donald Trump called for “stronger sanctions”, at a time when China is calling for restraint. It does seem according to analysts who reported on the incident that the recent test might suggest a longer range than previously tested devices, however, they clarified that the nature of the launch is still to be determined. Japan defense minister mentioned that the missile was launched at around 5:28 Japan’s local time, from North Korea’s western coast and flew

“US should “fully support, help organise,

and assist those regional partners

create an Arab NATO-like structure and

framework. Build an Arab Army that is able to secure their regional

responsibilities”

Michael T. FlynnSoldierBorn 1958 - Present

''Warning against bioterrorism “The next epidemic has

a good chance of originating on a computer

screen.”''

Bill GatesBusiness magnate

Born : 1955- Present

By: Yasmine Fouda

BY: Rania Emam Eman Rashed

North Korea strikes again amid rising tensions

Getting youth into the equation

First annual investment conference in El Gouna, Hurghada City

Sisi inagurate development projects in Upper Egypt

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Visa, FEDCOC launch first Egypt Card Security Week 10 years tax exemption, transfer of profits abroad revive Egypt’s real estate sector

British oil investments to make Egypt new energy superpower, says UK envoy

An attempt to expand Egypt’s venture capital sector

Egypt’s trade deficit declines 56% in February year-on-year

In a press release, the UK Embassy in Cairo said Casson attended the inauguration of BP’s first two gas fields in the West Nile Delta Project, which was inaugurated Wednesday by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and the company’s chief executive Bob Dudley.

The project involves the development of gas and condensate fields located in western Mediterranean deepwater concessions approximately 75 kilometres off the coast of Alexandria. BP has announced the start of production of natural gas from the Torres and Libra fields, ahead of schedule by

The Egyptian Association for Direct Investment organized a forum for stakeholders in startups and venture capital funds. The forum aims to advance investments in venture capital in an attempt to expand the country’s equity investment sector.

Chairman of the Egyptian Association for Direct Investment, Abdallah El Ebiary stresses the significance of venture capital for the growth of startups, as well as small and medium enterprises on the overall performance of the economy.

The decision to initiate a forum came after an association meeting with equity investors, experts in the startup field, mentors and incubator managers.

El Ebiary noted that the forum is a vital step for the development of the sector. It brings together startup investors with venture capitalists in one platform to discuss ways in order to grow the industry.

Khaled Ismail, CEO of KI Angel Venture Capital Fund emphasized the importance of separation between small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and

Exports increased by 22.1 percent in February compared to the same month last year to reach $2 billion up from $1.6 billion. In the meantime Egypt’s trade deficit in February declined by 56 percent to register $2.1 billion, down from $4.7 billion recorded in the same month last year, state statistics body CAPMAS said in a statement Saturday.

Exports increased by 22.1 percent in February compared to the same month last year, to reach $2 billion up from $1.6 billion.

Fertiliser exports increased by 173.8 percent and crude petroleum exports increased by 104.6 percent.

Exports of some products decreased in February 2017 compared to the same

eight months and under budget, according to the press release.

In November, BP said it had plans to invest $13 billion in Egypt before 2020. According to the embassy, total production by the two projects is expected to reach about 1.5 billion cubic feet per day, hitting peak production in 2019. This would equate to about 30% of Egypt’s current natural gas production.

“The new gas today from Egypt’s giant new field shows Britain supports Egypt with more investments than other countries do, with nearly 50% of all investment flows. BP is investing $13 billion in five years to make

startups. SMEs are often small family businesses that are already established in the market, while startups require more attention from investors. Additionally, startups are in need for education and guidance, not only funding in order to exchange the required expertise.

Some of the challenges facing venture capital investors are the unavailability of skills and proper funding for young entrepreneurs to grow their emerging projects. Most of those entrepreneurs developed a practical experience after being employed for a while in existing companies before starting their businesses, as opposed to newly graduates who lack skills and work experience.

Ahmed El Sherif, chairman of the board of directors of Abdullatif El Sherif Group and member of the Egyptian Association for Direct Investment reiterated the three main obstacles for venture capital in Egypt. The legal and regulatory framework of the sector, sources of funding and the availability of experienced entrepreneurs should be tackled by such forums to develop the venture sector in Egypt.

month last year, such as dairy products, down by 24.1 percent, carpets, down by 17.8 percent, and furniture, down by 3.2 percent.

Imports in February 2017 decreased by 35.8 percent to reach $4.1 billion down from $6.4 billion registered in

Egypt the new energy superpower.That’s more from one British

company than the entire IMF loan,” Casson said. He highlighted the size of overall British investments in Egypt, reiterating that UK companies have invested $43 billion in Egypt, making it the number one foreign investor in the country with almost half of all investment since 2011.

“British investment gives Egypt exactly the fuel it needs. Not adding to Egypt’s debt. Not dollars flowing out of Egypt for imports. British investment means foreign currency in the bank for Egypt, jobs for Egyptians and a world class energy supply for Egypt,” Casson said.

On the other hand, Tamer Azer, director of A 15 Investment and Venture Development discussed the progress witnessed by the sector in recent years. This shall enrich the industry with the new adopted skills and various investment models implemented by investors.

Azer added that the new generation of successful business men are more educated and are likely to take risky decisions. This

February 2016.Imports of Iron decreased by 53.7

percent while imports of organic and inorganic chemical products decreased by 22.3 percent compared to February 2016.

Year-on-year, imports of crude petroleum increased by 49.3 percent and petroleum products increased by 37.6 percent.

It is worth noting that The Egyptian Central Bank floated the pound against the dollar in November 2016 in an attempt to revive the country’s flagging economy, leading the pound to plummet, reaching an average exchange rate of EGP18.0 to the dollar, compared to EGP8.88 prior to flotation.

will increase the inflow of venture capital funds, as opposed to international financing institutions that require extensive amount of market data, hard to acquire by emerging industries.

Finally, Azer revealed his optimism regarding the sector despite the challenges, emphasizing that this positive image must be conveyed to foreign investment institutions to increase the flow of investments in the country.

Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Tariq Al-Mulla stressed on the importance of applying modern technologies on all oil and gas industries to achieve maximize cost reduction and optimize returns from Egypt’s natural resources. This came during his speech at the opening of the workshop on modern technologies adopted in oil, gas, refining and petrochemicals sectors. The event was organized by Honeywell Foundation, who specialize in technical support for petroleum projects, as well as training services and application of occupational heath and safety requirements.

Egypt mobilizes oil & gastechnologies to maximize returns

Tariq Al-Mulla

Egypt’s trade deficit in February declined by 56 percent to register $2.1 billion, down from $4.7 billion recorded in the same month last year, state statistics body CAPMAS said in a statement Saturday.Exports increased by 22.1 percent in February compared to the same month last year, to reach $2 billion up from $1.6 billion.Fertiliser exports increased by 173.8 percent and crude petroleum exports increased by 104.6 percent.

Egypt’s trade deficit declines 56percent in February year-on-year

The International Monetary Fund staff team and the Egyptian authorities have reached a staff-level agreement on the first review of Egypt’s economic reform programme, supported by the IMF’s $12 billion loan, according to a Fund statement on Friday.The statement by the head of the IMF delegation to Egypt, Chis Jarvis, said that once approved by the Fund’s executive board, “completion of the review would make available SDR 895.48 million (about $1.25 billion), bringing total disbursements under the program to about $4 billion.”

IMF reaches staff-level agreement with Egypton delivering $1.25 bln loan installment

Christine Lagardeal-Jundi, CEO mobilization and statistics unit

British Ambassador to Egypt John Casson said petroleum

giant British Petroleum (BP) is investing $13 billion over five years to make Egypt the new energy superpower, through investments worth more than Cairo’s three-year $12 billion loan deal with the IMF.

The conflict between the East and the West is witnessing unprecedented transcendence in events on all levels and scales, how far it will take us continues to be forecasted, but the actual repercussions might be beyond all speculations.

The current conflict is one that entails strategic dimensions, searching for mineral, and natural resources, aiming for control of all that’s scarce and leads to supremacy. Those in charge of running the show might be arms dealers, multi nationals, or modern imperialists, or simply nations struggling for territorial expansion. If we head on a hunt for the root of all evils in the Middle East, and the mother conflict that’s triggering all religious, economic, and other disputes in the region, we find the Arab – Israeli conflict. Numerous actors make use of this long lived dispute, whether their aim is to achieve their own set targets and agendas, or whether they genuinely seek to restore the Palestinians right to their lands is a long story that remains to unfold.

I can openly say that religious mentors of all faiths are struggling to set up a code of ethics where there is agreement on peace, mutual respect, and wealth sharing. The cultured and educated circles support their quest, yet sadly the media remains volatile with its gloomy and negative feeding of ignorance, and hate of the “other”. This is one of the main matters that result in misunderstanding the essence of Islam, among others; which in turn leads us to march down the defense tunnel, when the main problem is simply ignorance of the core book of the “other”.

In Robert Satloff book “Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust›s Long Reach into Arab Lands” the writer sets off on a quest to find the Arab hero whose story will change the way Arabs view Jews, themselves, and their own history. In this regard, long before the Christian re-conquest of Portugal and Spain that forced expulsion of Jews and Muslims, thousands of Jews were given refuge in Muslim North Africa and the Ottoman empire, as both territories shared culture, history and mutual trust; which they acquired over the years.

The Middle East Monitor’s article «The Arab who rescued Jews from the Holocaust» dated 25 April, 2017, tells the story of Mohamed Helmy, an Egyptian doctor who was honored in 2013 by Israel›s Yad Vashem Museum, for keeping in hide a jewish family during the jews deportation from Germany. He kept them in his cabin at Berlin from the 10th of March 1942 till the war came to an end. Up to this point Arabs had absolutely no problem with the Jews, on the contrary they co-existed with them, but today is a different story. Dr. Helmy›s family refused to receive an award on his behalf from the Israeli state , pointing out that «If any other country offered to honor Helmy, they would have been ecstatic , but they want no awards from Israel. The problem here is not in the world religion’s; or in the differing cultures; the core problem very simply and straight forwardly is Israel’s territorial expansion plans, and the way they deal with the Palestinians and their crises.

That said, I sincerely believe and am sure that millions of humans out there agree with me that the road to peace starts from dealing with the Arab Palestinian dilemma, so let’s pray for peace and the day we can join the march.

The march towards peace starts from "the mother of all disputes"

By: Eman Taher

Read

Abdallah El Ebiary

John Casson

By: Nagy Rashid

3www.meobserver.org

Stamp duty and interest rates hindered rising stock market movements Arab Investment Bank participating in financial inclusion

anks ompaniesB C&

EGP flotation raises cement exports to 1 million tonnes in Q1

5 companies win tender to supply 250,000 smart electricity metres

Turkish construction giant Yuksel has won a $506.3 million contract from Saudi government for its ambi-tious Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, which will pave way for construction of 34 stations,1,353 com-munity bus stops and six pedestrian bridges in capi-tal Riyadh.

$506.3 m

EFG Hermes, a leading financial services corpora-tion in the Middle East and and North Africa (Mena) region, has announced that Vortex, the European renewable energy platform managed by its private eq-uity division, has reached an agreement with US renewable energy leader Terra Form Power to ac-quire a 365 MW portfolio of 24 operational solar assets in the UK.

365 MW

First Bahrain Real Estate Development has posted a net profit of $2.7 million during 2016, representing annual growth of 148 per cent over the $1.1 million reported in the year prior, the company said at its Annual General Meeting (AGM).

148%

Pell Frischmann, one of the UK's leading engineering, development and manage-ment consultancies, said it has completed the design of a $700-million water infra-structure rehabilitation pro-ject in Iraq with the help of Aconex, a major provider of the global platform connect-ing teams on construction and engineering projects.

$700 m

Banque Misr Signs a Loan Agreement with CDB for $ 500 m

Egyptian real estate developer Capital Group Properties (CGP) plans to award three tenders for the development of the first phase of Borooj, an integrated urban project coming up on a 5-million-sq-marea on Suez-Ismailia desert roads, said a report.

CGP, a joint venture between Emirati groups Abu Dhabi Capital Group and Al Ain Properties, is considering large tracts of land development in a number of coastal and residential areas, reported Daily News Egypt, citing a senior official.

The Abu Dhabi Capital Group is a renowned investment group with several key projects in a number of countries across the globe, including the Hard Rock Hotel in Dubai, New Scotland Yard in London, Capital Plaza in Montenegro, and Rowdat and Capital Bay in Abu Dhabi.

The company aims to sign construction contracts worth E£1

Five companies won a tender to supply 250,000 smart electricity metres—out of seven companies that submitted their bids to the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy.

The consultant of National Service Products Organization (NASPO) completed the technical and financial assessment to send the contracts to the ministry .

The list of winning companies include Huawei, ZTE, and Elsewedy Electric. Companies that won the tender must use 25% of components from the local market.

The current tender is set to implement a pilot project for the installation of 250,000 smart metres across six distribution companies, including 50,000 smart metres for both North Cairo Electricity Distribution Company and South Cairo Electricity Distribution Company, as well as 25,000 metres for Middle Egypt Electricity

Distribution, South Delta Distribution Company, and Alexandria Electricity Distribution Company.

According to the ministry, the smart metres project will help consumers manage electricity, which would lower their bills. The project also enables clients to pre-pay for their consumption, increase the degree of accuracy of metre reading, and reduce the time period between the metre reading and billing.

The smart metres will enable clients to monitor consumption and rationalise use, where the screen of the metre will show all data regarding the remaining balance in KWh, its value in pounds, the remaining days, and the segment on which charges are calculated.

The ministry aims to install 20m smart metres during the upcoming 10 years as part of the strategy to eliminate wrong readings and electricity thefts.

billion ($53 million) for the first phase of Burooj within the first four months of the year..

Three contracting companies are already in the race for the contract.

.CGP had last year signed up Hassan Allam Contracting Company for the development of 250 townhouses in the first phase of the Borooj project, said the report.

The integrated urban project will be developed in four phases over the next 10 years at a total investment of E£50 billion ($2.64 billion).

Banque Misr will be signing a loan agreement for $500m with the Chi-nese Development Bank (CDB) on the sidelinesof the bank’s participation in the events of the Silk Road Conference.

This loan will be used to finance the importing from China for companies work-ing in the Egyptian market.

The total portfolio of small and medium enter-prises (SMEs) in the bank has reached EGP 4bn, to support SMEs, with a 5% interest rate. The bank’s main focus in the financ-ing it provides industrial and agricultural projects. Eletreby stressed that the

state’s economy can only improve with the support of those two pillars.

The bank has prepared a strong expansion plan abroad, noting that it has opened a representative office in China and is work-ing to obtain necessary licensing for a similar of-fice in Russia. Necessary approvals are also being obtained to open offices in Kenya, Korea, and So-malia.

Banque Misr is launch-ing a financial leasing com-pany through shareholding with the Tahya Misr fund, the Misr Insurance Holding Company, and the Misr Fi-nancial Holding Company.

Cement sector did not export since 2009, says head of cement production division at FEI.

Medhat Stefanos, head of the cement production division at the Federation of Egyptian Industries (FEI) said that

liberalising the exchange rate increased the exports of cement to one million tonnes in the first quarter (Q1) of 2017.

Stefanos added that cement plants aim to increase their production capacity to 84 million

tonnes by 2020.He expected that production

capacity by the end of the year reaches 60 million tonnes.

At a press conference held by the division, Stephanos pointed out that the cement industry can

export 10 million tonnes and aims to reach 30 million tonnes annually.

“There were no cement exports since 2009 until 2016 due to the consumption of 95% of production in the domestic market and cement exports during Q1 2017 are only 1 million tonnes, ” Stefanos said. “The exports of Q1 2017 went to Libya and Yemen, and the division seeks to participate in the reconstruction of Syria immediately after the end of political tensions.”

He pointed out that the cost of quarrying fees rose by 16% after the flotation of the pound.

Stefanos noted that the cement industry is innocent of the high prices of housing units and that cement only accounts for 3% of total construction costs.

Daily News

Saudi-based Advanced Petrochemical Company (APPC) has reported a eight per cent growth in its revenue for the first quarter to $140.2 million compared to the same period last year despite a shutdown of eight days.

$140.2m

17 May 2017

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank-Egypt (ADIB-Egypt) said it is proud to support the Egyptian government—represented by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE)—in its financial inclusion efforts, reaching out to underserved segments of society and allowing them access to all the benefits they can gain by being integrated in the country’s banking system.As part of the Financial Inclusion Week, which ran between 27 April and 4 May, ADIB-Egypt offered individuals the opportunity to open accounts that are free of administrative fees and with no required minimum balance throughout the week at its regular branches, as well as via its microfinance units that have been established across the country, including underserved areas, where the bank excels.

ADIB opens free bank account tocontribute to financial inclusion in Egypt

Qatar First Bank (QFB), a leading Shari’ah compliant bank based in Qatar, has announced several key appointments in the senior management level in the institution.The selections come in line with QFB’s acting chief executive officer Khalid Al Khoori's new human resources strategy to promote and attract Qatari talents.The bank is keen to build a sustainable work environment that attracts national workforce, said a statement from QFB.

Qatar First Bank announceskey appointments

Gamal Negm, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), said that the CBE affirms its permanent role in supporting the national economy and works on the soundness of banks’ performances, keeping up with the most important international developments that affect the Egyptian banking market positively. Negm added that financial inclusion is one of the most important international concepts that have attracted the attention of international organisations and central banks in general, which includes many banking concepts and principles that lead to achieving the goals of the state as well as the development of society. This was mentioned in a speech delivered by Negm during the opening of the 9th annual conference of the Egyptian Banking Institute held last week.

Negm reveals CBE’s efforts for achieving financial

CGP to Award Real Estate Construction Contracts Of EGP 1 Billion

CIB 1Q 2017 profits leap 34%Commercial International

Bank (CIB) reported first-quarter 2017 consolidated revenue of EGP 3.32 bil-lion and net income of EGP 1.73 billion, or EGP 1.37 per share, up 34% from first-quarter 2016.

CIB Management stated : “CIB made a strong start to 2017, delivering record bot-tom and top lines, following a year with ample econom-ic, financial and regulatory

challenges. This quarter, besides normal growth in net interest income, CIB wit-nessed remarkable growth in its non-interest income, which tripled from last year, largely driven by a pick-up in trade finance activity and foreign exchange transac-tion volumes as the foreign currency shortage started to resolve following the CBE decision to float the Egyptian Pound by end of last year.

Oriental Weavers Q1 profits leap 174%

Oriental Weavers’ consol-idated net profit for the first quarter of fiscal year 2017 jumped 174% to score EGP 257.59 million, versus EGP 94.16 million for Q1-16.

Sales increased in the first three months of FY17 to EGP 2.52 billion from EGP 1.45 billion in the same pe-riod last year, according to a bourse filing released on

Sunday.Standalone profit for

Q1-17 amounted to EGP 104.88 million, 53% up from EGP 68.69 million for Q1-16. On another note, the company’s board approved to establish a new plant in the industrial zone in 10th of Ramadan City.

The stock rose on Thurs-day 0.21% to EGP 18.95.

Arab Investment Bank participating in financial inclusionHany Seif El Nasr, chairperson

of the Arab Investment Bank, as-sured that the bank is strongly participating in the initiative through its presence in recrea-tional clubs, distributing flyers on financial inclusion, and introduc-ing a number of products that fit all segments of society, along with opening bank accounts free of administrative fees and exempted from a required mini-mum balance. He added that the bank saw demand from clients for opening bank accounts, es-pecially from youth at clubs and youth centres.

This comes within the frame-work of the initiative posed by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) for

the promotion and establishment of the concept of financial inclu-sion, which works to include the largest amount of society in the financial system and utilise its

positive impact on the stability of the financial sector in the coun-try, as well as achieve increases in economic growth. This also comes as part of the bank’s so-

cial role in caring for the limited and middle-income segments, women, and small and medium enterprises.

El Nasr explained that the Arab Investment Bank is working hard to develop products, enhance customer confidence, and par-ticipate in educating customers on how to use and benefit from financial products and services, as well as expanding the network of financial service providers and establishing small branches to finance small projects and in-creasing the number of ATMs in order to expand the scope of providing financial and banking services to activate financial in-clusion.

Mohamed Eletreby

17 May 20174 www.meobserver.org

Hamad Obaid Al Mansouri, TRA Director General, said that the authority is working to enable UAE ICT sector to work collaboratively with the private sector in multiple areas such as internet policies, standardization, internet advancement and e-Commerce. “Recent studies show that the majority of global CEOs believe the next three years will be more critical for their industry than the last 50 years. This is not only because of the fast evolving advancements. The critical element lies in the ‘creative destruction’ or the constructive restructuring, which is the result of dramatic changes in economy, along with the emergence of new business models,” he said.

Collaborative efforts

Saudi Arabia and Russia have agreed to extend the Opec and non-Opec oil output reduction deal for another nine months till march 2018, reports said.Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih and Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak in a joint statement said that the two countries will recommend at the meeting of the agreement participants on May 25 to extend the agreement for another 9 months, said a Tass report.Oil prices jumped over 1.5 percent on Monday after the Saudi-Russia statement. Brent crude was at $51.65 per barrel at 0500 GMT, up 81 cents. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was at $48.62 per barrel, up 78 cents.

Saudi, Russia agree to extenddeal to cut oil output

Dubai developer Nakheel has announced organisational changes, with a newly-created department and new senior management appointments, as the company enters the next phase in its growth. This comes as part of its efforts to enhance services and deliver growth strategy, said a statement from Nakheel.The Dubai developer has appointed Fawzi Al Shehhi as the new managing director for Nakheel Community Planning and Management – a new department that combines its existing community management and development control and urban planning functions.Al Shehhi has been with Nakheel since 2011 and previously held the position of director Development Control and Urban Planning.

Nakheel announces keyorganisational changes

Dubai to host international road congress

130 nations head to the “Belt and Road Forum”

Bahrain Investment Market unlocks untapped investment opportunities

UAE ignites competition for tech start-ups in UAE

$11m project to replace water pipes in Ajman EFG Hermes posts Q1 profit of $13m

MENA Region

The recently launched Bahrain Investment Market’s innovative trading platform unlocks previously untapped and potentially lucrative opportunities, said its CEO Shai-kh Khalifa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa.

He was addressing members of the Bahrain Associ-ation of Banks (BAB) who got an up-close look at the investment opportunities offered by Bahrain Bourse’s (BHB) newly-launched Bahrain Investment Market (BIM), an equity market for growing business ventures in Bah-rain and the wider Mena region.

The presentation, which took place at the BHB on Thursday (May 4), is part of the BHB’s stakeholder out-reach and engagement campaign about the BIM.

Shaikh Khalifa said: “The Bahrain Investment Market’s innovative trading platform unlocks previously untapped and potentially lucrative opportunities for institutional and individual investors around the world to invest in proven businesses that are ready to take the next step in their growth and share in their future success.

“In offering dedicated, reliable and efficient capital markets platforms, the Bahrain Bourse gives the private sector an even broader range of capital-raising solutions to select from in order to fuel its future growth and devel-opment. It is important that the banking sector is aware of these investment options and how they work together towards building a private sector that is more dynamic and sustainable,” Shaikh Khalifa added.

The Bahrain’s Investment Market was officially launched in March 2017. It is specifically designed for companies which are looking to raise capital to fund their future growth, such as entrepreneurial ventures and ma-ture family businesses. Among its numerous benefits and features are easier admission and financial disclo-sure rules, access to global investors, guidance services through specialized professional advisory firms, and a dedicated Tamkeen support program.

“The Bahrain Investment Market model is an integrated

world-class ecosystem which is accessible to companies and equipped with the necessary safeguards to protect investors. We placed great importance on ensuring end-to-end transparency to allow investors to quickly evaluate and benchmark the eligible companies, from the initial listing documents to audited financial reports after list-ing,” Shaikh Khalifa noted.

Operated by the BHB and licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain, the Bahrain Investment Market is under-pinned by a national financial regulatory framework that ranks among the very best in the world, complemented by one of the world’s top countries in terms of ease of

doing business, the statement said.According to the Index of Economic Freedom 2016, a

report published by The Wall Street Journal and The Her-itage Foundation which evaluates countries in four broad policy areas that affect economic freedom, Bahrain ranks 18th globally and is the only country from the Mena re-gion to feature in the Top 20.

It is worth noting that ”Bahrain’s financial sector includes over 400 financial

institutions; which contribute just over 17 per cent to-wards Bahrain’s $31.1 billion GDP.

The belt and Road Forum for Inter-national Cooperation was held on May 14-15 in the capital city of China. Ac-cording to CGTN twenty-nine heads of states participated in the “Belt and road” initiative, along with 1,500 del-egates from over 130 nations. China is currently constructing the world’s larg-est infrastructure program connecting Europe and Asia, in a USD 900 billion project.

The summit is the most anticipated meeting since the Chinese President first announced the concept in 2013. It aims to rally international support for the project, encompassing powerful al-lies such as the Russian and Turkish presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Erdoğan. Meanwhile, India, the pro-ject’s most vocal opponents, deemed the initiative “little more than a colo-nial enterprise” that would accumulate large debts on the communities, ac-cording to the Times of India.

The mega project is comprised of a land-based economic Belt, as well as a Maritime Silk road. The former con-nects numerous Asian countries with

Eastern Europe through railways and roads, bridges and tunnels, along with pipelines, energy projects, industrial parks and logistics centers. Simultane-ously, the Maritime Silk Road is a sea route stretching from the South China Sea and South East Asia, through the Indian Ocean and the Middle East area into the eastern Mediterranean, in addition to other directions. Moreover, the Maritime road has some links with the land- based projects.

The preparation of the project is rout-ed back to 2013, as the second-largest economy in the world aims to connect the Chinese market with almost the rest of the world markets. This move comes after the recent economic slow-down witnessed by China, whereas, it is expected for the scheme to raise the living standards of 70% of the global population in a geo-economic revolu-tion. Western powers voiced concerns over the true intentions behind China’s multi billion dollars project, where one G7 leader, the Italian prime minister, attended the summit, according to the guardian.

Egypt sent several ministers to par-ticipate in the event, after the Trade and Industry Minister Tarek Qabil met with the Chinese Ambassador in Cairo to discuss the future of economic co-operation between Egypt and China, according to the State Information Ser-vice official website.

In 2016, Egypt signed an agreement with China to establish business coun-cils, as a signatory state on China’s One Belt, One Road trade initiative, as reported by Enterprise press. The Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce is the entity responsible for signing an agreement with China Council for the Promotion of Interna-tional Trade establishing the respec-tive business council.

Egypt formerly joined the Silk Road Economic Belt trade Union in June 2015, as well as, becoming a founding member of the China-led Asian infra-structure Investment Bank. Additional-ly, the Commercial International Bank in Egypt (CIB) was announced as an African partner for the initiative by the Bank of China.

By: Hania Elkady

The UAE Telecommunications Regu-latory Authority is launching a program to select the best 100 tech start-up ideas in the country. Last Sunday, Abdul Rah-man Al Marzouqi, manager for internet advancement policies and programs department at TRA said at the “Fast Forward Summit” that the program is undertaken in collaboration with other tech incubators, government and non-governmental entities in the UAE, cur-rently there are 15 partners already and more will join in the future. Some of the tech incubators in the UAE include Im-apct Hub, in5, Dtec, AstroLabs, Dubai Silicon Oasis Founders, Hamdan In-novation Incubator and Dubai Startup Hub, apart from many accelerators. Al Marzouqi said that out of the 100 start-ups, 50 per cent will be from the UAE nationals and the other 50 per cent from expats with a valid UAE residence visa.

TradeArabia News Service

According to Gulf News, Dubai will host the International Road Fed-eration’s (IRF) inaugural Middle East Regional Congress and Exhibition in October, the Roads and Transport Authority announced on Saturday.

The said event is scheduled to be held on October 29 to 31, and will witness the participation of world leaders and regional stakeholders in the transportation sector.

The aim is to examine the best

practices and share knowledge in the field of road safety and smart systems. The congress is set to re-view latest technological and sci-entific developments for improving road networks and share expertise between global entities.

Panel discussions will be held to tackle the best practices and inno-vations in the field of smart cities, road safety designs, smart transit systems, asset management, pave-ments, partnerships, finance and issues of relevance to the environ-ment and sustainability. Training workshops and field visits will also be arranged during the event added Gulf News.

It is worth noting that IRF was established in 1948 and comprises members from 115 countries.

Source: Reuters, photographed by Thomas Peter

An aerial view of Sheikh Zayed Road (C) is seen with the Burj el Arab hotel in Dubai

Abdul Rahman Al Marzouq

Hamad Obaid Al Mansouri Khalid Al-Falih Fawzi Al Shehhi

5www.meobserver.org Africa

Kenya Set to Gain From China’s Infrastructure Projects Zimbabwe: Harare City Council Owed Over U.S.$600 Million as Shop Owners refuse to pay rates

17 May 2017

The Jubilee government has hit out at the opposition for their criticism over the high cost of living.The Deputy President William Ruto said the National Super Alliance (Nasa) leaders had no agenda for the country but were busy propagating lies instead of selling their manifestos.Speaking at Amtalla Stadium in Kimilili Town, Bungoma County, on Sunday after issuing certificates to the party’s nominees for the August 8 General Election, Mr Ruto called on Kenyans to elect Jubilee leaders, saying they had a proper agenda and strategies for Kenyans.

Kenya: DP William Ruto Tells OffNasa Leaders On Cost of Living

William Ruto

President John Magufuli made the request in Dar ELSalaam during his meeting with South African President Jacob Zuma who arrived in the country on Wednesday evening for a twoday state visit.South Africa is the only African country in the five developed economies that form the BRICS grouping, which also includes Brazil, Russia, India and China.Dr Magufuli told his guest that Tanzania was determined to undertake the ambitious railway project to facilitate smooth transportation of passengers and goods to eventually boost the economy.“The soft loan will enable us to undertake some of the phases in the envisaged project as we aim at middle income economy by 2025,” Dr Magufuli told reporters after his closed-door meeting with Zuma.

Tanzania: Dar Eyes Brics Loans for SGR

Letting Brian Molefe go back to his old job at Eskom after he broke his contract and resigned was better than paying out the proposed R30m pension he wanted, Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown said on Friday.“In terms of the Eskom board’s proposal Mr Molefe agreed to serve out the remainder of his original contract and to reconsider his contract I objected to,” Brown said at a press conference to elaborate on the unusual move.“The board’s proposal I believe is a better value proposition for the SA fiscus than the previous proposal.”

South Africa: Molefe’s Eskom ReturnBetter Than R30 Million Payout - Brown

Lynne BrownJohn Magufuli

Digital investment in Africa accelerates leaders from Africa’s biggest telecom investment companies including, MTN, Orange, Helios Towers, American Tower, Eaton Towers, Google, Microsoft, Liquid Telecom and SEACOM, are meeting with investment bankers, investors and advisers in London on May 24, 2017, to discuss accelerating new investment opportunities in digital communications and infrastructure.

“Telecom and tech companies are ramping up their investment plans for digital infrastructure and services across Africa as reach of service and

Officers, investment bankers and advisers, will meet at TMT Finance Africa 2017 at the Hilton Hotel Tower Bridge in London, United Kingdom, on May 24 to discuss the new investment and partnership opportunities.

The executive only event, which is in its eight year in London, features over 70 speakers and 25 sessions on telecoms, media and tech investment and partnership opportunities for Africa.

Participating companies include: MTN Group, Orange, Liquid Telecom, Eaton Towers, American Tower Corporation, Jumia Food, SEACOM,

demand is soaring,” commented an investment banker focused on Africa.

“On the infrastructure side, operators are investing in spectrum, especially in the 700MHz band, as well as on strengthening their networks by migrating from 3G to 4G LTE-based services. Mobile tower operators are also investing heavily, while submarine and terrestrial cable providers have been increasing the available backbone infrastructure.

Over 200 senior telecoms, media and tech executives, including many industry Chief Executive

Savannah Fund, Fibersat, PayStack, Sliide Airtime, Connect Africa, Rack Centre, Citi, Helios Towers Africa, Standard Bank Group, Atlas Mara Ltd, Draper Dark Flow, Google, Microsoft, Ringier Africa, Norton Rose Fullbright, WorldRemit, IFC, Amadeus Capital Partners, WIOCC, Societe Generale Chanzo Capital, Africa Mobile Networks, African Broadcast Network, Intelsat, Digital World Capital, MainOne Cable, M-KOPA Solar, Flexenclosure, Hardiman Telecom and African Capital Alliance.

Telecoms and technology companies are increasing investments

across Africa as the rapidly improving digital infrastructure and services, and the uptake of smartphones, provide huge opportunities for business and revenue

growth.

Africa remains a virgin land of resources and opportunities, as well as, a consumer market with a growing population.

China is poised to take advantage and strengthen its influence in the continent. That much was clear, last year Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from China to Africa grew sharply with a 106% rise in projects, according to Ernst & Young’s Attractiveness Program Africa 2017. In comparison, FDIs by the US and UK fell 5.2 and 46.8% respectively. Average FDI

investments grew 31.9% to $139 million from $92.5 million in 2015.

While still behind UK and the US in terms of number of FDI projects on the continent, the value of China’s FDI investments in 2016 topped other foreign investments as reflected by the report.

China’s 2016 FDI input in Africa ranked highest across three main metrics measured; Projects, Capital Investment and J o b s ,

EY suggests that Donald Trump’s presidency and United Kingdom’s impending brexit may be the main factors behind the current set back, yet China’s prominence on the continent is only likely to increase in the coming years.

South Africa remained the largest hub of FDI projects in Africa despite its economic and currency struggles mainly due to political

uncertainty. It retained “it’s appeal as a launch-pad for growth across the continent,” the report says. South Africa was also the largest intra-regional investor on the continent spending $1.6 billion. Including South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco, Kenya and Egypt, while some of Africa’s larger economies, accounted for 58% of the continent’s total FDI projects in 2016.

How can we grow the Egyptian economy NOW?

Digital investment in Africa accelerates

In a very informative session, titled “How can we grow the Egyptian economy now”, the American University in Cairo, hosted Dr. Noha Bakr, Adjunct Faculty, Department of Political Science, AUC, and Mr. Aly Wali, Senior Director of Logic Management Consultant to address the key potentials of developing the Egyptian Economy. The session was held May 11th on AUC new campus.

Dr. Noha Bakr, started the seminar by providing an overview of the main national problems facing Egypt. She stated that the security problem is actually one of the most serious problems hindering direct foreign investments as well as the tourism industry in Egypt. She highlighted that we are faced with relatively high unemployment rates in Egypt, a high inflation rate and a budget deficit of

LE 300 billion. “However, we cannot say that there is no hope; in fact there is hope and there’s a multitude of opportunities within these challenges, especially that Egypt is endowed with a strong political will, and managed various reforms, most importantly the lift of subsidies, accompanied by a safety net for unprivileged citizens; for example “Takafol” and “Karama” tailored programs for unprivileged citizens” said Bakr.

Dr. Noha Bakr, clarified that we do need to move fast with our development process; we further need to fix our long and short term goals, and accomplish quick wins to satisfy the average citizen. She moved to point out that several financial resources have been allocated to infrastructure projects, which in due time will have a solid

impact on the country’s economic development and stability.

Bakr, pinpointed that developing all sectors of the economy is vital; A developed economy is the outcome of developing the various sectors, not only a few of them.

She also referred to one of the most successful economic experiences in Egypt, which is sorting out the electricity crises; Bakr explained that this experience was successful as it included all success elements, such as; having a fixed strategy, good planning, and crises management techniques. Furthermore, Mohamed Shaker, minister of electricity, managed the crises in a decentralized manner. She said that administrative powers when it came to the electricity issue were equally disseminated, which is

one of the most crucial keys required for any political or economic success, namely decentralization of powers. Shaker, was also able to allocate the necessary funds; furthermore the crisis was prioritized and there was a strong political determination that aimed to manage the crisis. Bakr, also added that Ministry of Social Solidarity, is another obvious example for a successful ministry that is operating in a decentralized manner.

The AUC adjunct professor, stressed the importance of education and research in order to empower and upgrade human capabilities, as they are the basic requirement when it comes to building a nation. “Egypt will be built by it’s own human capabilities, hence, education is important to change people’s lives

and make them embrace all efforts required to build their nation.”

As Wali started his part of the session, he initiated the discussion by tackling the main challenges ahead of Egypt. These can be summarized as follows; major budget deficit, high inflation rate, dollar shortage, unemployment and bureaucracy. He notes that the Egyptian government, loses LE 326 Billion/ annually; due to the current major economic challenges; which the government can actually address either by increasing government revenues, or decreasing government expenses. “In fact, Egypt’s government revenues are meager in comparison with other countries. In 2015 Egypt’s government revenues, were $31 billion”, said Wali, adding that Egypt has a relatively big trade deficit; in 2015-2016, Egypt’s exports reached $ 25 billion dollar, whereas its imports reached $77 billion dollar, which indicates a deficit of $52 billion dollar. Furthermore, Egypt’s exports are very low in comparison with other competing countries; in 2015, Egypt’s exports reached $25 billion dollar, in comparison with Turkey; which exports scored $144 billion, Malaysia, $200 billion, Thailand, $214 billion , and Korea $ 527 billion.

So how can we manage the current situation?

In order to reduce the shortage in supply as well as the dollar shortage, several key solutions can be suggested, however, every solution has its impact over the economy and some solutions cannot be adopted in Egypt’s case.

In other words, reducing imports, can be a suggested solution, however this is very difficult, because the successful way to reduce imports is by reducing the value of the currency to make imported goods more expensive; however, this could culminate in a drop in the standard of

living. Remittances from Egyptians

abroad, can help, however it’s impact is quite slow. Tourism can be another suggested solution. However, the best solution that could have a major impact on the Egyptian economy is boosting exports; the Egyptian economy can grow more than $25 billion; in fact increasing our exports is the best solution to fix the trade budget deficit.

Aly Wali proceeded to add that decision makers in Egypt, constantly get distorted messages, such as; we must start first with upgrading the education system as Malaysians did, or let us focus on our services to increase Egypt’s GDP; however growing industrial exports is an essential step to make substantial moves to drive the Egyptian economy to recovery.

According to IMF Egypt’s GDP, in 2015 was $ 331 billion and actually it is expected to drop to $220 billion in 2017 as a result of the devaluation decision.

Manufacturing is regarded as a significant sector, we badly need to focus on developing it’s parameters in order to increase the GDP, and in turn industrial exports.

Wali further said that investment is another key issue that poses as a must in order for us to manage to fix the trade deficit. To grow our government revenues, we need to attract investments that are export focused”.

Furthermore, we need to work on increasing investment opportunities; every increase of government revenues by $1/year requires $5 investments.

The seminar attendees ranged from university students to multinational companies representatives, UN officials, as well as journalists, who were all keen to join in the discussion.

By: Amira Elhamy

China’s African investments in 2016 exceed US and UK

www.meobserver.org6Technology 17 May 2017

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg had a message of resilience and hope for Virginia Tech graduates on Friday.“I’ve spent the last two years studying resilience, because something happened in my life that demanded more of it than I ever needed before,” Sandberg said in a prepared draft of her speech.In 2015, Sandberg’s husband, SurveyMonkey CEO Dave Goldberg, died of a cardiac arrhythmia while they were vacationing in Mexico. She suddenly became a widow in her 40s with two small children.“Sometimes I can’t believe it actually happened. I woke up on what I thought would be a normal day. And out of nowhere, my world changed forever,” she said.

Sheryl Sandberg tells VirginiaTech: Anyone can be resilient

Sheryl Sandberg

Microsoft has announced new tools and services to help developers modernise existing apps and build more intelligent ones, on every platform, and for every platform.The announcments were made as Microsoft welcomed thousands of developers to Seattle for Build 2017 — Microsoft’s annual developer conference.During his opening keynote, Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft, announced that Windows had reached 500 million Windows 10 active devices and noted how — together — Windows, Microsoft Office and Microsoft Azure offer developers more than a billion opportunities to connect their innovations with Microsoft customers.

Microsoft announces newtools and services

Satya Nadella

US ride hailing business Lyft has formed a partnership with the Google owner’s self-driving car unit Waymo to help develop self-driving vehicles.Lyft is Uber’s biggest rival in the US.Many firms, including Uber, are racing to develop driverless cars, which they hope can be paired with journey-booking systems to revolutionise transport.The move is set to escalate rivalry between Waymo and Uber, which are fighting a court battle over self-driving technology.Waymo says a former employee stole some technology and started a company with it. That company was later bought by Uber, which says it did not steal or use Waymo secrets.

Lyft strikes self-driving dealwith Google’s Waymo

Waymo

Uber faces criminal probe in US over ‘greyball’ code

The scrutiny has started because the firm is accused of using “secret” software that allows it to operate in regions where it was banned or restricted.

The software, called “greyball”, helped uber identify officials seeking to stop the service running.

A spokesman for Uber declined to comment on the investigation, reported the Reuters news agency.

It is claimed greyball was used in several areas, including Portland, Oregon, where the ride service was still seeking official approval to operate.

In those areas, transport regulation officials posed as passengers in a bid to prove that the company was operating illegally. Greyball worked out who the officials were and blocked them from booking rides with the company’s drivers.

In a letter sent last week to transport regulators in Portland, Uber said it used the greyball software “exceedingly sparingly” in the city and had not used it since April 2015 when it was granted permission to operate.

Uber’s use of the software was revealed by the New York Times earlier this year. Uber defended its use in a blog saying the software helped it work out if a ride request was legitimate. It helped Uber limit fraud and protected drivers from harm, it added.

It is not clear what sanctions Uber will face if the investigation finds that it did act illegally.

The criminal inquiry comes at a difficult time for Uber, which has faced criticism on many fronts. It is currently fighting a lawsuit from Google-backed self-driving car firm “Waymo”.

While the R&D function plays a central role in enabling innovation, typical R&D budgets are only a small percentage of revenue. Accenture’s Dr. Andrew Zoryk says digital technologies can help steel companies gain a competitive advantage.Along with cost reduction and customer service, steel companies are focused on product innovation to a greater or lesser extent as one of the three core elements of their business strategy. While the research and development (R&D) function plays a central role in enabling this third strategic pillar, typical R&D budgets are only 0.5 to 1.0 per cent of revenue in many companies. Squeezing the maximum return out of such limited budgets is crucial.

At a macro level,commodity-oriented steel producers are investing in targeted innovations to increase their product ranges in selected areas. Thus, they’re encroaching into the markets of diversified steel players. On the opposite side of the spectrum, producers that traditionally have considered themselves as specialty steel players are not only enhancing their products, but also diversifying into other areas—again entering the markets of the diversified steel companies.What’s clear is this: whether a steel

too long.One large European steel company, for example, requires on average up to five years to introduce a new material innovation due to the extensive time needed for laboratory sample tests, pilot tests and evaluation, and pre-production tests. With today’s increasing pace, such time-scales are not competitive.Fortunately, the use of digital technologies to transform the R&D function can help steel companies change the game, especially when many companies are chasing after similar innovation areas.

Potential areas for improvement include:Ideation: From screening and managing a portfolio of ideas, to fostering a culture of innovative thinking, steel companies

as well as use it as input for statistical test evaluation and planning analysis.It is important to note that digital technology can make it easier for the R&D function to access internal and potentially external data sources, which will make cyber security and intellectual property management a necessity.

Analytics: Traditionally, analyzing potential innovations has depended on the human mind (i.e. the metallurgists and researchers working in the laboratories). By leveraging digital technologies, these human skills and experiences can be greatly enhanced. Using big data techniques, advanced analytics, automatic trend sensing, pattern recognition and so forth allows steel companies to analyze vast volumes of data more rapidly and effectively. These three areas are just a few examples of how digital technologies can help steel companies rethink the approach to innovation in the industry. Such improvements can help drive R&D productivity and effectiveness—reducing development costs and time-to-market, while increasing trial material development success rates and portfolio management effectiveness. The companies that prove successful will become key innovative suppliers for their customers—a strong benefit in an increasingly “me too” world.

company is being squeezed in the middle as a diversified producer (and hence looking to increase innovation as a defensive mechanism), or on either side as a challenger, the company needs to be more effective in innovating and bringing new materials to market. It’s a prime way to help enable competitive advantage.

The importance of Research &Development in a steel company can be easily overlooked. Historically, it has been difficult to prove any clear linkage between invested R&D dollars and increased business profitability. Companies must wrestle with the time required, as well as the complexity of bringing new steel products to market. In many cases, the cycle time is

can take advantage of digital platform technologies to facilitate more effective information sharing between various stakeholders, both internal and external—from suppliers through to end-customers and users of steel products. These digital platforms can also help to increase transparency on the overall R&D portfolio, and help leaders make the “right” decisions and conduct the “right” projects.

Process and Connectivity: With input from various internal and external business stakeholders, in which contributions are often made on an ad-hoc basis, R&D processes can be streamlined for flexibility and agility to enhance overall innovation excellence. Improved process and data integration with other key internal processes—such as business planning (e.g., sales and operations planning, production planning) - will help drive efficiencies.One example is minimizing the potential negative impact of R&D plant production trials on the overall manufacturing plan. Once produced, trial data information can be more easily extracted from various manufacturing and quality systems, incorporating outputs from automated virtual Internet of Things (IoT) platforms that gather and share digital information. Using IoT (connecting sensors, equipment, computers and other objects), steel companies can collect and exchange more comprehensive data,

Britain’s national health service fell victim, its hospitals forced to close wards and emergency rooms and turn away patients. Russia appeared to be the hardest hit, according to security experts, with the country’s Interior Ministry confirming it was struck.

All told, several cyber security firms said they identified the malicious software, which so far has been responsible for tens of thousands of attacks, in more than 60 countries. That includes the United States, although its effects there didn’t appear to be widespread, at least initially.

Mikko Hypponen, chief research officer at the Helsinki-based

cyber security company F-Secure, called the attack “the biggest ransomware outbreak in history.”

Security experts said the attack appeared to be caused by a self-replicating piece of software that enters companies and organizations when employees click on email attachments, then spreads quickly internally from computer to computer when employees share documents and other files.

Its ransom demands start at $300 and i n c r e a s e after two hours to $ 4 0 0 , $500 and then $600,

said Kurt Baumgartner, a security researcher at Kaspersky Lab. Chris Wysopal of the software security firm Veracode said criminal organizations were probably behind the attack, given how quickly the malware spread.

Microsoft announced that it had already issued software “patches”. But many companies and individuals haven’t installed the fixes yet or are using older versions of Windows that Microsoft no longer

supports and didn’t fix.By Kaspersky Lab’s

count, the malware struck at least 74 countries. In addition to Russia, the biggest targets appeared to be Ukraine and India, nations where it is common to find older, unpatched versions of Windows in use, according to the security firm.

Spain, meanwhile, took steps to protect critical

infrastructure in response to the attack. Authorities said they were communicating with more than 100 energy, transportation, te lecommunicat ions and financial service providers about the attack. Ransomware attacks are on the rise around the world.

It is worth nothing that in 2016, Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in California said it had paid a

$17,000 ransom to regain control of its computers from hackers.

Ransomware hits the world with its maliciousness

R&D in steel: Enabling a digital advantage

’Smartphones that charge in five minutes ’could arrive next year Fiat Chrysler recalls 1.25m trucks over software error

Friday dozens of countries were hit with a huge ransomware attack that locked up computers and held users’ files for ransom at a multitude of hospitals, companies and government agencies.

It was believed to be the biggest attack of its kind.The malicious software behind the onslaught

appeared to exploit a vulnerability in Microsoft Windows that was supposedly identified by the National Security Agency for its own intelligence-gathering purposes and was later leaked to the internet.

By: Ahmad Abu el- Hamd

teel

7www.meobserver.orgusinessB pportunitiesO17 May 2017

The Middle East Observer does not have any

responsibility for any mistakes, errors

or changes in the tenders’ information.

Such errors are the reponsibility of the companies

that publish these tenders.

Oil & Gas Products, Equipment and

Services

Architecture and Urban Development

Architecture and Urban

Development

Client : The Company of South and Middle Delta for Transport & TourismAddress : Smouha, AlexandriaTender : General tender for con-sulting offices for the provision works of retail projectsTender documents : EGP1,000A bid bond of EGP3,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 28-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Client : Egyptian Union for Contrac-tors of Building & constructionAddress : Emad Hamdy Street, Nasr City, CairoTender : General tender for the execution of painting works of the Union’s hospital including (2) base-ment, first floor (4) floors up of total square 25000m2Tender documents : EGP5,000- Tenders to be submitted in two en-velopes (technical & financial)Opening envelopes : 31-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Client : Mansoura New Interna-tional HospitalAddress : Mansoura, EgyptTender : General tender for sup-ply of industrial detergents for laundering department at the hos-pitalTender documents : EGP200A bid bond of EGP16,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 28-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Healthcare, Medical Equipment & Services

Client : Cairo GovernorateAddress : 7, El Gomhouria Square, Abdin - CairoTender : 1) Rehabilitation and updating of the training center projectTender documents : EGP200A bid bond of EGP3,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 30-5-2017Opening envelopes : 11-6-2017 at 12:00 noon2) Construction of three stars ho-tel at Manesterly area.Tender documents : EGP400A bid bond of EGP40,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 22-5-2017Opening envelopes : 31-5-2017 at 12:00 noon3) A project of construction of commercial markets at Cairo (East - West - South - North)Tender documents : EGP200A bid bond of EGP5,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 28-5-2017Opening envelopes : 30-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Architecture and Urban

DevelopmentClient : Misr Petroleum CompanyAddress :6, Orabi Street, CairoTender : Tender No. 2/2017 for :1) Management and processing of Fayoum Station (Al Mesalah)A bid bond of EGP 25,000 to be submitted2) Mehalla El Koubra Station (Ghar-bia Governorate)A bid bond of EGP 25,000 to be submitted3) Lands & Stores to be used in commercial activities at Alexandria GovernorateA bid bond of EGP10,000 to be submittedTender documents : EGP350- Tenders to be submitted in two en-velopes (technical & financial) - A discussion session to be held on 31-5-2017 AT 10:00 amOpening envelopes : 14-6 -2017

Architecture and Urban

Development

Client : Giza GovernorateAddress : 406, Ahram Street, GizaTender : General tender for the development of El Warraq and Masaken Gezerit El-Da-hab & Boulq El Dakrour areas1) Tender POP/DAO works of local streets paving in El-Waraq DistrictTender documents : EGP1,000A bid bond of EGP106,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 16-5-2017Opening envelopes : 11-6-20172) Tender POP/DAO/FAO 2 - Giza/works D2-BED2 for wokrs of supply of vacuum street sweeper 4m3 capacityTender documents : EGP1,000A bid bond of EGP27,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 16-5-2017Opening envelopes : 12-6-20173) Tender No. PDP/DA2/FAO3 - Giza works / D2 - BEDI works of upgrading of sumitation untility in Boulaq El-Dakrour DistrictTender documents : EGP1,000A bid bond of EGP100,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 22-5-2017Opening envelopes : 9-7-20174) Tender No. PDP/DA2/FAO3 - Giza works / D2 - BED2 for works of street network up-grading for 93 streets in Bou-laq El-Dakrour DistrictTender documents : EGP1,000A bid bond of EGP80,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 23-5-2017Opening envelopes : 10-7-20175) Tender No. PDP/DA2/FAO3 - Giza works / D2 - BED3 for works of street lights installa-tion at 93 streets in Boulaq El Dkarour DistrictTender documents : EGP1,000A bid bond of EGP10,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 24-5-2017Opening envelopes : 11-7-2017

Architecture and Urban

Development

Client : National Institution for Sugar DiseasesAddress : 116, Kasr El Eini Street, CairoTender : General tender for the maintenance of (200) airconditon-ing units, central, two ansoline re-frigeratorsTender documents : EGP100A bid bond of EGP2,500 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 22-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Healthcare, Medical Equipment & Services

Plastic & Rubber

Client : Misr International Hos-pitalAddress : Dokki - GizaTender : 1) Tender No. (1) for supply of chemicalsA bid bond of EGP12,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 21-5 -20172) Tender No. (2) for supply of plastic and other requirementA bid bond of EGP20,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 22-5 -2017 at 12:00 noon3) Tender No. (3) for supply of paper productsA bid bond of EGP8,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 24-5-2017 at 12:00 noonTender documents : EGP500 for each tender

Client : Petroleum Company for Commercial Petroleum ServicesAddress : 1, Anwar Al Mofty of Abas Alaakad Nasr City, CairoTender : General tender No. 2/2017 for supply of citerne cars as follows:1) (2) cars - Citerne cars - capac-ity of 5 tons2) (2) cars citerne cars capacity of 7 tonsTender documents : EGP200A bid bond of EGP5,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 28-5-2017

Consultancy

Client : Sharikia Water and Wastewater CompanyAddress : 29, Saad Zaghloul St., Zagazig, EgyptTel.: +20552302532Tender : Invitation for prequali-fication improved water and wastewater services program for consulting services (construction supervision) for the construction, supervision of water networks, pumping stations and wastewater treatment plants as a part of the improved water and wastewater program funded by German De-velopment BankTender documents : Available at : iwspiconsultants@gmai.comOpening envelopes : 14-6-2017 at 12:00 noon

Architecture and Urban

Development

Oil & Gas Products,

Equipment and Services

Banking, Insurance & Finance

Client : National Bank of EgyptAddress : 1187, Cornish El Nil Street, CairoTender : General tender for the sup-ply and furnishing the bank’s Cairo branchTender documents : EGP2,000A bid bond of EGP200,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 25-5 -2017 at 12:00 noon

Banking, Insurance & Finance

Client : Misr Amerya Company for Spinning & WeavingAddress : Amerya - Alexandriaor Cairo Office : 83 Azhar Street, CairoTender : General tender No. 37/2017 for the supply of insurance coverage for all the company’s assets (fixed & current assets) for one year.Tender documents : EGP250Opening envelopes : 22-5 -2017

Energy, Power, Electrical &

Renewable Energy

Client : Alexandria Company For Construction (Talaat Mustafa)Address : 36, Mosudaq Street - Dokki, GizaTender : 1) Tender No. 30/2017 for supply and manufacturing of lighting columns for streets at “Madinty Project”Tender documents : EGP1,500Opening envelopes : 22-5-20172) Tender No. 31/2017 for sup-ply and manufacturing of lighting spots for steets at “Madinty Pro-ject”Tender documents : EGP2,000Opening envelopes : 24-5-20173) Tender No. 32/2017 for supply, erection and delivery of Gabedge Chute Mod. 310 & 320 at “Madinty Project”Tender documents : EGP2,000Opening envelopes : 22-5-2017

Printing & Publishing

Client : Egyptian Company for Tel-ecommunicationsAddress : 24, Sharabia Street, Ghamra, CairoTender : Reference No. 33/2017/3 for supply and printing for the com-pany including the following con-gratulation cards, statements and envelopesTender documents : EGP280Opening envelopes : 21-5-2017 at 11:00 am

Automobiles & Auto Parts

Client : Holding Company For Chemical IndustriesPlovers & Engineering CompanyAddress : 18, Emad El Din Street, CairoTender : Supply of (4) private cars of different brands - capacity of engine not less than 1300 CC benzineTender documents : EGP300A bid bond of EGP20,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 29-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Client : Petroelum Gases Com-pany“Petrogas”Address : 140, Touman Bay - Zaitoun, CairoTender : General tender No. 211/2016/2017 for the supply and erection of Khashamenium kitchenTender documents : EGP300A bid bond of EGP8,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 24-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Banking, Insurance & Finance

Client : National Authority for Tun-nelsAddress : Ramses Square, CairoTender : General tender for sup-ply of marine insurance for articles, equipments and requirements im-ported from abroad.Tender documents : EGP250A bid bond of EGP32,000 to be submitted- Tenders to be submitted in two en-velopes (technical & financial)Opening envelopes : 25-5 -2017 at 12:00 noon

Client : Cairo Airport CompanyAddress : Cairo AirportTender : Exploitation of room No. 555/2/018 in passengers’ building No. (3) as a cafeteriaTender documents : EGP2,000A bid bond of EGP50,000 to be submitted- Tenders to be submitted in two envelopes (technical & financial)- An info session will be held on 21-5-2017 at 12:00 noonOpening envelopes : 6-6-2017 at 12:00 noon

Entertainment, Media, Sports and Leisure

Client : Egyptian Company for Sals and Metals at Fayoum(EMISAL)Address : 10, Mesaha Square, Dokki, GizaTender : 1) Tender No. 7/2017 for supply erection and process-ing of packaging food sats (200 - 1000 gm)Tender documents : EGP500Opening envelopes : 21-5-2017 at 11:00 am.2) Tender No. 8/2017 for supply of 200 tons rolls.Tender documents : EGP1,000Opening envelopes : 22-5-2017 at 11:00 am.

Machinery & Equipment

Client : National Bank of EgyptAddress : 57, Bahy Eldin Barakat, En Nahda Square - GizaTender : 1) Tender No. 27/2016/2017 for the supply of communication equipmentTender documents : EGP5,000Opening envelopes : 7-6-20172) Tender No. 28/2016/2017 for the supply and erection of appa-ratus and equipments for the com-puter network.Tender documents : EGP3,000Opening envelopes : 4-6-2017

Banking, Insurance & Finance

Architecture and Urban Development

Client : The America University in CairoAddress : New Cairo, EgyptTender : Project of rehabilitation of students’ buildings, buildings inside the America University at New Cairo the project is including of:1- Tender No. (1) for civil works and electrical works (painting - electrical works - doors)2- Tender No. (2) for supply of furni-tures (kitchen - shelves - wood unit-sat rooms)Tender documents : EGP500 for each tender- The period of implementing the project ended at 15/8/2017,Opening envelopes : 28-5-2017

Banking, Insurance & Finance

Client : Arab Investment BankAddress : 8, Abd Al Khalek Tharwat Street, CairoTender : General tender for supply of thefollowing :1- PrintingsOpening envelopes : 23-5 -2017 at 12:00 noon2- StationariesOpening envelopes : 24-5 -2017 at 12:00 noon3- Paper for computerOpening envelopes : 25-5 -2017 at 12:00 noon4- Requirement for computers & per-sonal computersTender documents : EGP200- Tenders to be submitted in two en-velopes (technical & financial)

Client : Akhbar Elyoum Organi-zationAddress : 6, Sahafa Street, CairoTender : 1) Tender No. 3/2017 for the supply of utm/firewallTender documents : EGP150A bid bond of EGP10,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 21-5-2017Opening envelopes : 29-5-2017 at 12:00 noon2) Tender No. 4/2017 for supply of roused floorTender documents : EGP150A bid bond of EGP20,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 25-5-2017Opening envelopes : 31-5-2017 at 12:00 noon3) Tender No. 5/2017 for supply of leased lineTender documents : EGP150A bid bond of EGP5,000 to be submitted- A discussion session to be held on 28-5-2017Opening envelopes : 5-6-2017 at 12:00 noon

Client : Al-Nasr Automotive Company (NASCO)Address : Waid Houf, Hel-wan, EgyptTel.: 202-23691863Fax: 202-23692612Tender : Public tender No. 1/2017 for partnership with NASCO aiming to reform and upgrade NASCO, aiming at manufacturing and assembly of passenger vehicles and es-tablishment of nessary feed-ing industries.The joint venture company will be operating according to the investment law 159/1091Tender documents : US$2,000A bid bond of US$50,000 to be submitted- Tenders to be submitted in two envelopes (technical & financial)Opening envelopes : 16-7 -2017

Industry

Oil & Gas Products, Equipment and

ServicesClient : Al-Taawn Petroleum Com-panyAddress : Salah Nessim Street, Zai-tyat - SuezTender : General tender for supply of advertising and marketing works at Abu Khalifa Substation at IsmailiaTender documents : EGP250A bid bond of EGP 7,500 to be sub-mitted- Tenders to be submitted in two en-velopes (technical & financial)Opening envelopes : 24-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Laboratory Equipments & Services

Client : Suez UniversityAddress : Suez EgyptTender : General tender No. 4/2017 for the supply of laboratory equip-ment for the energy lab.Tender documents : EGP250A bid bond of EGP50,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 24-5 -2017 at 12:00 noon.

Security ServicesClient : The Institution of Re-searches & Arab StudiesAddress : 1, Ethehad Al Mohamin Al Arab, Garden City, CairoTel.: 2792267927922678Tender : Invitation for specialized companies in cleaning and secu-rity works.

Healthcare, Medical Equipment &

Services

Client :General Organization for Health Insurance- Sinai & Canal BranchAddress : 23, July Street, Port SaidTender : General tender No. 2/2016/2017 for the supply, erection and processing of central aircondi-tioning system at Mabara Hospital and Tadamn Hospital at Port Said.Tender documents : EGP2,000A bid bond of EGP500,000 to be submitted- Tenders to be submitted in two en-velopes (technical & financial)Opening envelopes : 31-5-2017 at 12:00 noon

Postponement

En Nasr Company For Fertilizers and Chemical Industries (Ataqa - Suez) announced postponement of tender No. 14/2016/2017 for supply, design and erection of water treatment unit from 9-5-2017 to 30-5-2017

Entertainment, Media, Sports and Leisure

Client : Heliopolis Sporting ClubAddress : Heliopolis, CairoTender : General tender for sup-ply of different furnituresTender documents : EGP1,000A bid bond of EGP20,000 to be submittedOpening envelopes : 22-5 -2017 at 1:00 pm.

Client :EgyptAir HospitalAddress : Abu Bakr El Sedik Street, AlmazaTender : General tender No. 31/2016/2017 for supply of colonoscopyTender documents : EGP400A bid bond of EGP8,500 to be submitted- Tenders to be submitted in two envelopes (technical & financial)Opening envelopes : 21-5-2017

Healthcare, Medical

Equipment & Services

17 May 2017 www.meobserver.org

Getting youth into the equation

2016 2018

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Egypt’s Promising musician Hassan Khan wins Silver Lion award in Venice

napshotS 8 ObserverMiddle EastThe

Heading on a start with an awards ceremony La Biennale di Venezia awarded Egypt’s promising musician Hassan khalifa the Silver Lion award early this week. This year the Biennale included 120 invited artists from 51 countries.1975 UK born Hassan Khan, lives and works in Cairo. He was the president of the International Jury of the 54th International Art Exhibition at the Venice Biennale. Hassan Khan was awarded for his work Composition for a Public Park (2013/2017) displayed at the Giardio

delle Vergini; which the artist described on his Facebook page as “a multi-channel music and [Libretto] text piece in three movements, especially designed for public parks”.According to Ahram online, The Biennale›s Golden Lion for Best National Participation went to Germany, with a special mention to Brazil. The Golden Lion for the Best Artist of the Exhibition Viva Arte Viva went to German artist Franz Erhard Walther, with two special mentions for US artist CharlesAtlas and Kosovo artist Petrit Halilaj.

The much-awaited hotel “ Albatros Aqua Park Sharm “ with 19 outdoor pools and the largest water theme park within the region is opening in Sharm El Sheikh Mid-May with the Egyptian tourism industry engineer Mr. Kamel Abou-Aly’s (Pickalbatros Hotels’ Chairman) vision and strong belief that tourism sector will continue to flourish.

There is no doubt that Egypt’s young population represent the core of a succesful sustainable development strategy in Egypt and the true wealth of our nation, being one third of the population, it is our challenge to integrate youth into society and cultivate their knowledge, education and perception towards unleashing their innovation, skills and potential towards achieving their dreams and hopes for a better world. With such an intent, there are various aspects to how Egypt is moving towards integrating youth into society, reforming education and developing youth business opportunities.Integrating Youth into SocietyPresident Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, called for integrating youth through a momentum of Egyptian Youth Conferences, stating that “Egyptian youth with deep ambition and modern scientific backgrounds; are our key hope towards building a civilized, well-educated country; through their dedication Egypt will long live whatever happens”. Integrating youth into society, government and introducing them to the challenges which the country

is triumphing to address is a process that should involve schools, universities, clubs, mosques, churches as well as, private and public companies that may hold special youth days and discuss what we can do to move forward. This can be as simple as a clean-up day for streets, and inviting the neighborhood youth to take care of it. Involving and integrating youth in society should not be the sole responsibility of the government driven only by the president’s initiative, it should rather be a national approach.Egypt’s Education path – A call for a national planAlthough the country is focused on developing educational resources through building a research portal that supplements education by establishing a unique hub of learning resources, tools and references through the Egyptian Knowledge Bank, the more serious challenge is the funds. Upgrading Education is a priority, enough funds should be secured in order to achieve the targeted objective. Currently, the country is laying the main foundation for the various stages, and modes

of education. The Ministry of education is in dire need for restructuring , along with respective curriculums and teachers, skills. Development the current phase facilities on co-ordination with international educational institutions and publishers so as to achieve the set goal of a comprehensive reform of the educational system in Egypt.Egypt’s current Minister of education 30 years experience in education; having worked with UNESCO in the field of testing and developing a path for education reform makes him capable of leading the most important surgery Egypt needs at this point. Some may undermine his will to majorly amend and turn matters around, but wasting his time on side meaningless battles will simply waste his efforts, and will both neither add to his efforts nor push him forward.On the other hand, it is important that the Minister share his vision, milestones and target for education reforms. It is simply a must that if this roadmap in itself is achieved that Ministries follow suit , in

order to complete the road and mission towards fulfilling our dream of best education in Egyptian schools. There should be full transparency regarding all set deadlines in this regard , as such a plan is adequate to get the whole country motivated. The Egyptian Knowledge Bank (EKB) is a remarkable step towards developing tools and resources for teachers and researchers, but the question that may remain of importance is the economies of scale in the process, so far 10,000 teachers were trained (as per the Ministry’s announcement) how much are utilizing the purchased resources and do we need to expand further into purchases that may consume millions of dollars at this stage. Expanding our base of scientific research material requires both; qualified students and teachers to examine and research. We must utilize these financial resources in building labs at schools and increasing salaries for teachers, matters that are regarded as a current priority in the process of developing schools and teachers. The Social Fund for

development and the Central Bank of Egypt are playing a vital Role in supporting government and international agencies funds for developing micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).Through the expanded activities towards financial inclusion at schools and universities, banks yielded a flow of new young accounts opening, a flow that needs a parallel flow of MSMEs. This can be undertaken through intensive programs that promote funds use, follow-up of projects for target youth groups and active marketing for projects and industries that can create new jobs, especially in remote area s.In ConclusionIt is essential to clearly recognize that our educational fall down and literacy have long roots, and are not a creation of the Arab spring or current administration and government. Acknowledging this fact is quite essential in order to manage to build a better future, and to attain such a balanced mix of quality education that can deliver a cultured, skilled and responsible caliber in the labor market. The path we chose for

development will require a clear road and a plan that should be maintained by various administrations.On the other hand, grouping funds for MSMEs under one umbrella with a business concept is essential, as it needs to utilize the potential of youth verses successful start-ups and industries of priority to the country. Such an umbrella should be equipped with an agenda of projects, a network in remote areas and staff that are capable of doing feasibility studies and action funds with appropriate and realistic credit terms. With the will to proceed forward with such an umbrella that can adopt a life-cycle approach -which is necessary in the current context, tracking the education plan, monitoring, seeking and developing business opportunities for youth added to involving schools, universities, clubs, mosques, churches as well as, private and public companies into integrating youth in building our society- we will be able to take our first step towards attaining our goal of making our human resources our primary asset.

By: Mona Alam El- Din

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Khan wins Silver Lion award in Venice