Egypt will sell 11 cotton gin lands worth EGP 27 billion ($1.51 billion) after changing their activities to fund the development of the rest of spinning and weaving companies, Egypt s business sector minister Hesham Tawfik said on Monday. Tawfik explained that the sale of cotton gin lands would be "after changing their activity from industrial to real estate."

Egypt s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi discussed in a meeting in Cairo Sunday efforts in fighting illegal migration and a number of regional issues with the President of the EU Council Donald Tusk and the Chancellor of Austria Sebastian Kurz, the Egyptian Presidency said in a statement. El-Sisi reviewed with Kurz and Tusk Egypt s own efforts in combating the illegal migration problem and securing its land and sea borders especially with instability in neighboring countries.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will address the general debate of the 73rd session for the UN General Assembly, held from September 18 to October 5 at the UN Headquarters in New York. Diplomatic sources revealed that Sisi could meet with US President Donald Trump, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macaron and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conti.

Egypt s Petroleum Minister Tareq El Mulla said the output of the giant Meditteranean Zohr gas field has seen a six-fold rise since January when it was officially inaugurated by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. The offshore gas field now produces 2 billion cubic feet per day, equivalent to approximately 365,000 barrels of oil equivalent, Mulla said, adding that production from the field has hit a record that would help Egypt realize natural gas self-sufficiency.

Egypt will launch early in October a large medical screening campaign, Presidency Spokesman Bassam Radi said Wednesday. The campaign will be carried out to detect and treat Hepatitis C patients and other chronic diseases, he said. Radi added that the campaign will cover 50 million citizens.

Egypt s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement tackling the European Commission s criticism of its recent trial, which sentenced 75 protesters from 2013 to death, on charges of acting for the Muslim Brotherhood. The statement, which aims to “answer some diplomat s questions about Egypt s position” over the criticism, rejects the European Commission s “pattern of bias, and absolute judgments that contradict with the principles of respecting the law and judiciary system”.

Vice President of the Nasser Social Bank Sherif Farouk announced that the bank will be adopting a new social strategy to reduce the financial burden of schools on citizens. The strategy entails a funding program to help pay for school fees annually, over 10 months. It also includes an option where the bank will fund a full educational period (primary, secondary, etc), which will be paid back over a couple of years.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry called for developing a "sustainable" strategy to prevent a recurring shortfall in funds at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) during an Arab League meeting in Cairo on Tuesday to drum up support for the agency following a recent financial crisis caused by a US aid cutoff. Shoukry cautioned that undermining the agency would "fuel extremism and instability in the region," according to state news agency MENA. He applauded the efforts by Arab countries to support the agency, but said "a short-term and long-term action plan to maintain [UNRWA s] role" is needed.

Egypt s Ministry of Military Production signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Tuesday with the country s Ministry of Trade to promote small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and encourage entrepreneurship, a statement from the military production ministry said. The MOU, signed between the National Authority for Military Production and the trade ministry s Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (MSMEDA), is designed to promote micro, small, and medium-sized projects in various fields, and to provide technical training and marketing support for entrepreneurs.

An Egyptian parliamentary delegation, led by speaker Ali Abdel-Aal, held talks with a number of senior Cypriot officials on Monday. Following a press conference with his Cypriot counterpart Demetris Syllouris, speaker Abdel-Aal said his two-day visit to Cyprus comes to reflect the current excellent relations between the two countries.

President Abdal Fattah al-Sisi announced that the government has spent LE32 billion for the construction of new roads and bridges, within opening the regional ring road and Nile corridor projects. Sisi said that the government paid a further LE6 billion to develop 2000 kilometers of the current road network, and asked Ministry of Transportation to compensate owners of the expropriated lands in public interest.

The US chief of the Central Command (CENTCOM) Joseph Votel has stressed that military-to-military exercises strengthen relations between Cairo and Washington, a statement by the US embassy read. “Egypt is one of our most vital partners in the region,” General Votel said. Votel was in Egypt for a couple of days to observe joint training exercises between US military forces and the Egyptian armed forces under the umbrella of the Bright Star 2018 exercises at Mohamed Naguib Military Base.

Cairo Criminal Court on Sunday sentenced Mubarak-era parliament speaker Safwat al-Sherif to three years in prison for illicit profiteering and abuse of power to make a fortune. The court convicted Sherif and his two sons, Ashraf and Ehab, on corruption charges in May 2016. Sherif and Ehab appealed the verdict, and the court of cassation ordered a retrial for them.

Egypt s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has returned to Cairo on Thursday after concluding a three-nation tour to Bahrain, China and Uzbekistan. El-Sisi discussed with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev ways to strengthen and develop bilateral relations between the two countries in various fields when he met with him on Wednesday.

Minister of Planning Hala El-Saeed announced Thursday that the total investments directed to the transportation sector in the sustainable development plan amounted to EGP 77 billion in 2018-2019 fiscal year, compared to EGP 65.7 billion in the previous fiscal year which ended on 30 June 2018. The increase in investments directed toward this sector is due to its importance as a key player and main catalyst in the economic and social development of the country, according to the statement.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said on Wednesday that he discussed with his Uzbek counterpart President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in the Uzbek capital, Tashkent about how similar the Egyptian and Uzbek experiences in economic reforms were. In a press conference held at the presidential Uzbek palace Wednesday morning following his talks with President Mirziyoyev, the Egyptian president thanked his Uzbek counterpart, government, and people for the warm reception he received.

The country s net foreign reserves increase to $44.419 billion at the end of August comapred with $44.315 billion in July 2018, Egypt s central bank said on Wednesday. Egypt s foreign reserves have been steadily increasing since Tariq Amer took office as the governor of the central bank in October 2015, and only decreased twice in July 2016 and October 2016.

Egypt is targeting a budget deficit of 8.4 percent of GDP for the 2018-19 fiscal year that ends in June, compared with 9.8 percent in the previous year, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait told a news conference on Tuesday. "Our economy has grown faster than we ve expected, our GDP has grown faster than the falling of our debt," Maait said.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi concluded his visit to China on Tuesday and flew to Uzbekistan, the first official visit by an Egyptian President to the Central Asian country. According to a statement by Egyptian presidential spokesman Bassam Rady, El-Sisi will visit the capital of Tashkent where he will meet his counterpart Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi met on Monday with his South Sudanese counterpart Salva Kiir on the sidelines of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation FOCAC 2018, which is set to be held in Beijing later in the day. "The meeting discussed pushing forward cooperation between both countries as well as the recent political and security developments in South Sudan," Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said in a press statement from Beijing.

The Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA) on Monday warned Uber and Careem, the two largest ride hailing companies in Egypt, against proceeding on a reported merger deal without receiving prior permission from the authority, an official statement read. The ECA said it has reached out to the San Francisco and UAE, respectively, based companies over July media reports that Uber is seeking to acquire Careem in an attempt to overcome a costly competition.