Egypt Looks to Saudi Economic Cooperation as Parliament Coalition Faces Setback

Egypt’s “Support the State” parliamentary coalition faced a fresh setback, while President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was expected to address the House of Representatives in the opening days of 2016. The brief account gave no details of the coalition’s difficulties or the planned speech.

Economic cooperation with Saudi Arabia was also in focus. Ambassador Shaltout outlined plans involving the cultivation of 100,000 feddans, meat production and the establishment of local pharmaceutical manufacturing.

A presidential decree approved a $400 million loan. The summary did not identify the lender or specify how the funds would be used.

In Giza, water projects costing 615 million Egyptian pounds were scheduled for completion at the start of summer. Separately, the Agriculture Ministry announced the formation of technical committees to monitor the fertilizer market.

EgyptAir passed a European aviation inspection, adding an aviation development to an agenda spanning parliamentary affairs, investment, infrastructure and agricultural oversight.