Egypt has ended a 14-day quarantine for hundreds of Egyptian citizens who had returned home from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus, Health Minister Hala Zayed announced in a press conference. Zayed said that all tests conducted on the 302 Egyptian citizens during the 14-day period, which is how long it takes for the disease to incubate, have shown that they are free of the virus or any other infectious diseases. The Egyptian government had designated El-Negelah Central Hospital in Marsa Matrouh as a quarantine hospital to house the returnees. The ministry has already taken the citizens back to their residences in Cairo and Alexandria on buses. The announcement comes two weeks after Egypt sent a special jet to bring back hundreds of Egyptian nationals from Wuhan as the epidemic caused a global scare. Last Friday, Egypt confirmed its first coronavirus case in the country, adding that the ill person was a foreigner, without giving further details. The person tested positive for the quick-spreading virus but had no symptoms, health ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed said over the weekend, adding that he had been quarantined in a hospital. This is the first reported case in Africa amid the outbreak of the epidemic which killed 1,770 since December, with over 70,000 infected globally, with the vast majority in mainland China.

The American University in Cairo (AUC) is celebrating the beginning of its second century by ‎organising a vibrant programme of events at its New Cairo campus from 15 to 19 February.‎ The president of the university, Francis Joseph Ricciardone told Ahram ‎Online: “AUC’s message from the centennial celebrations is that we are deeply rooted in this ‎country. We are committed to this country for the next 100 years.” ‎ Ricciardone added: “Egypt is great place. It is worthy to invest in its people. We hope other investors will ‎follow in our footsteps in education in particular.”‎ Riccardone appointed the 12th AUC president 1 July 2016. The AUC Board of Trustees ‎unanimously voted to renew its tenure for a second four-year term starting July 2020. ‎ ‎“We have the freedom to do what we think is right and get support from people who share that ‎vision. AUC has many donors, from individuals and some foundations, and pursues diverse cooperations,” Riccardone ‎continued. He added that AUC stays out of politics and supports the programmes of the ‎Egyptian government in improving the quality of higher education.‎ Through this year, AUC is focusing on the future and its plans for the next 100 ‎years, under the slogan "Be the Future." Riccardone stated that AUC s mission is to bring together great minds, and break down the barriers of ‎culture, religion, history and politics that separate people and cause distrust of one another. ‎‎ “People together from different disciplines and experiences can solve great problems of the ‎world,” he said‎. AUC moved 12 years ago from Tahrir Square to its new campus in New Cairo. “We have enough space (in New Cairo) to build for the future. ‎AUC completed phase one, focusing on the architecture of the campus. Now, we are going to tackle ‎phase two.”‎ Ricciardone will meet Monday with Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly to discuss ‎government priorities in education. Ricciardone concluded: ‎“We cannot predict what the future will bring. We must invest in our people and in ‎education. The future is full of opportunities beyond our dreams and full of threats and ‎challenges that lie under our deepest fears.”‎

Egypt will set up a 210 million euro ($228 million) facility north of Cairo that will convert rice straw into wood, the oil ministry said in a statement on Thursday, in a bid limit air pollution resulting from its burning. The plant, in the Nile Delta s Beheira, will produce 205,000 square meters a year of medium-density fiberboards (MDF), using technologies by Germany s plant engineering firm Siempelkamp, which will help carry out the project. Burning agricultural waste, mostly rice straw, has for years posed a major environmental challenge and caused severe air pollution in the already highly-polluted country. Experts have said rice straw has plenty of potential uses. A deal for the project was signed on Thursday between newly-established state wood technology company WOTECH and state-owned oil firm Petrojet during an international energy conference in Cairo. Another agreement was signed with the German firm. The project will help support government s efforts "to transform rice straw from an environmental challenge into an economic opportunity," the ministry said. It is part of the ministry s plans to expand in the petrochemical industry and set up new projects to provide main production materials for many local industries, the ministry said. The project was first announced in October. The ministry said at the time it is the first of its kind in Africa and the Middle East and the second globally after the United States. The plant will produce high-quality local products that will be used in various sectors like furniture, construction, and decoration, the ministry added. The project s shareholders include the Egyptian Petrochemicals Holding Company, the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation, SEDPC company, and Petrojet.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and US President Donald Trump s national security adviser Robert O Brien agreed to strengthen Egyptian-US coordination on Middle East issues, mainly in Syria and Libya . Shoukry and O Brien s met Tuesday in Washington, which Shoukry is visiting for a final round of talks on a massive hydropower dam Ethiopia is building on the Nile river. The two leaders agreed to bolster cooperation on regional issues, namely in war-torn Syria and Libya, including combating terrorism and curbing the movement of terrorist fighters to Libya and further into other African countries, Egypt s foreign ministry said in a statement early on Wednesday. The pair stressed on the need to "intensify discussions and cooperation to reinforce security and stability across the African continent and completely eliminate terrorism," the statement added. Shoukry and O Brien also tackled means to enhance bilateral relations, and discussed recent developments in negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and efforts by the US administration to hammer out an agreement between Ethiopia and downstream countries of Egypt and Sudan. Egypt fears the mega project would diminish its water supplies from the Nile.

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will travel to the US on Monday to participate in talks with the foreign and irrigation ministers of Ethiopia and Sudan over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in a final bid to resolve months of stalemates between Cairo and Addis Ababa over the operation of the mega dam. Egypt’s foreign ministry said in a statement early on Monday that the meetings, scheduled for 12 and 13 February, come under an agreement by the parties involved in the most recent round of talks, on 28-31 January, to reconvene in Washington this month to ratify a final version of a comprehensive agreement over the filling and operation of the GERD. Last month, the ministers of foreign affairs and water resources of the three countries agreed on a schedule for the filling plan and a mitigation mechanism for filling the dam during times of drought and prolonged drought. The last round of negotiations, which began on 28 and 29 January and saw an extension of two additional days, was sponsored by the US and the World Bank, who are acting as observers in the talks. The signing of a final comprehensive agreement is scheduled for late February, and the ministers have instructed their technical and legal teams to prepare the points for the final agreement. Tensions have been building between Egypt and Ethiopia in recent months after talks on the technical details governing the operation of the dam had failed to make progress. Ethiopia hopes that the massive $4.8 billion project on the Blue Nile, which has been under construction since 2011, will allow it to become Africa’s largest power exporter.

Egypt hosted political consultations with Sweden on Sunday at headquarters of the Foreign Ministry, where they discussed further cooperation between the two countries. The consultations were held under the joint chairmanship of Assistant Foreign Minister for European Affairs Badr Abdel Aati and Director of the Office for Middle East and North Africa at the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Ann Dismore. Abdel Aati commended the recent positive developments in relations between both countries, especially after exchanging top-level visits and conducting regular consultations on various bilateral as well as multilateral issues of mutual interest. He welcomed the Sweden’s willingness to promote economic cooperation by capitalizing on ongoing economic developments and mega national projects in Egypt, including the New Administrative Capital where many Swedish companies are involved. Egypt is Sweden’s largest trade partner in Africa and the Middle East, he noted. Abdel Aati said that Egypt eyes further cooperation with Sweden in various domains, such as capacity-building, new and renewable energy, startups, communication and information technology, medical services, waste recycling and offering scholarships for Egyptian students to study at Swedish universities Egypt is also looking for establishing trilateral cooperation in Africa involving the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development and and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, Abdel Aati added.

Egypt s President President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met on Sunday with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in Addis Ababa, Egypt s Presidential Spokesperson Bassam Radi said in a statement. El-Sisi also chaired the African the 33rd African Union (AU) Summit closed session, which is currently held in the Ethiopian capital. Presidential Spokesman Bassam Radi said Sisi asserted that Egypt is keen on maintaining cooperation with the UN institutions in the different domains to boost international peace and security. During the meeting, El- Sisi reviewed the priorities of Egypt during its presidency of the African Union in 2019, which included continuing progress as regards the implementation of UN Development Agenda in Africa, boosting inter-Africa integration projects and regional merging in addition to achieving tangible steps on the track of settling disputes. Meanwhile, Guterres lauded Egypt s distinguished position at the international arena, expressing appreciation for continued cooperation between Egypt and the UN. Guterres also praised the strenuous efforts of President El- Sisi during Egypt s presidency of the AU. The UN chief asserted keenness on promoting cooperation with Egypt to lay down basis of stability, security and development at the regional level especially in light of Egypt s pivotal role in Africa and the Middle East and its continuous support of the UN reform initiatives in the different domains in addition to Egypt s major contribution to the UN peace-keeping operations. The meeting also tackled the latest developments of many regional issues, especially the situation in Libya, Syria and the peace process in the Middle East, Radi said.

Egypt s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly attended on Wednesday the signing ceremony of an EGP 2 billion agreement between the ministries of transport and local development to improve the efficiency of roads in 12 governorates. The signing of the agreement was attended by Minister of Planning and Economic Development Hala El-Saeed, Minister of Local Development Mahmoud Shaarawy and Minister of Transport Kamel El-Wazir. Prime Minister Madbouly also chaired a cabinet meeting on Wednesday to discuss the progress achieved in top priority issues in order to upgrade services offered to citizens. Following the meeting, Minister El-Saeed said the deal comes as part of the state s keenness on improving services provided for citizens in line with the directives of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi. Minister Shaarawy said that upgrading the efficiency of roads is necessary for achieving economic development and providing better services for citizens. Minister of Transport Kamel El-Wazir said the agreement comes within the framework of the state’s development plan to keep pace with the latest developments in the field of roads and bridges. He added that President El-Sisi has agreed to allocate EGP 10 billion to maintain and raise the efficiency of roads in the governorates. Meanwhile, President El-Sisi issued a decree establishing a private university in Cairo s Heliopolis district. As per the presidential decree, the university, to be known as Al-Madina (City University), will include faculties of engineering, information, economics and business administration, art and design, and physiotherapy. More faculties, specialised higher education institutes and research units may also be established. The non-profit university will be established in Cairo s New Heliopolis City.

The Egyptian Meteorological Authority (EMA) said a new wave of unstable weather will hit the country from Wednesday to Sunday. The authority said that dusty and sandy winds will be active in most parts of the country, forming dust storms in some areas and causing turbulence in navigation in the Mediterranean Sea, especially on Wednesday and Thursday. The EMA added that there will be a rise in temperatures in most parts of Egypt of three to four degrees Celsius on Wednesday and Thursday before temperatures recede in most parts of the country by five to six degrees Celsius starting from Friday. The authority hinted there is an chance for a light to medium rainfall in Cairo from Friday to Sunday. Lows in Cairo and the Nile Delta cities are forecast at 12 degrees on Wednesday, and will go up to 13 on Thursday before dropping again to 12 on Friday, the EMA reported. Highs are expected to stand at an average of 22 degrees Celsius in Cairo and the Nile Delta on Wednesday and Thursday, dropping to an average of 16 degrees Celsius in Cairo and the Nile Delta on Friday. The coastal city of Alexandria will see almost the same highs as Cairo on Wednesday and temperatures will drop to 19 degrees Celsius on Thursday and 17 degrees the following four days. Lows in Alexandria will be slightly lower on Wednesday, hovering around 11 degrees. The popular winter Red Sea resorts of Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh will see average highs of 23 to 25 from Wednesday till Friday, and lows of 13 to 14 in the same period. The southern cities of Luxor and Aswan will witness highs of 23-25 and lows of 10 from Wednesday till Friday.

Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt could be close to reaching solutions over the issues related to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) after the involvement of the US and the World Bank as observers in the dam negotiations, Ethiopia s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed told the country s parliament, according to Ethiopian news outlet ENA. During a question-and-answer session held in parliament on Monday, the prime minister said that the negotiations between the three countries over the dam had been "tiresome, long and fruitless," which led to the involvement of the World Bank and the US as observers. Ahmed stressed that Ethiopia will not enter into any agreement that harms "its national interest" nor causes significant harm to the downstream countries. He reiterated his country’s commitment to "the principle-based stance of win-win solutions." During the session in parliament, which addressed various other economic and political topics, the Ethiopian prime minister underscored that “our support of Somalia is visible evidence that we never intend to cause harm to our neighbours.” The ministers of foreign affairs and water resources of Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan had agreed on a detailed schedule for the filling and operating of the dam during the latest round of negotiations in Washington held in late January. A final and comprehensive agreement with the detailed schedule is set to be formulated by technical and legal teams from the three countries over the next two weeks, but it will subject to a final look during a ministerial-level meeting in the US capital on 12-13 February prior to the signing by the end of the month. The US stepped up to host negotiations in November after the three countries announced that talks had reached a dead-end, and after Egypt asked for an international mediator. Tensions had been building between Egypt and Ethiopia over some technical details regarding the operation and filing of the dam. Ethiopia hopes that the massive $4.8 billion project on the Blue Nile, which has been under construction since 2011, will allow it to become Africa’s largest power exporter. Egypt, which is downstream from the dam, fears that the project will diminish its share of Nile water, on which it is almost entirely reliant for its fresh water.

Egypt has sent a special jet to bring hundreds of Egyptian nationals back home from the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the coronavirus epidemic began, the aviation ministry said in a statement on Sunday. An Airbus A330-200 aircraft took off from Cairo International Airport on Sunday morning bound for Wuhan with a special health ministry medical team on board. The flight has 297 seats. Cabinet spokesperson Nader Saad said late on Saturday that 306 out of a total 345 Egyptian nationals in Wuhan have requested to return home. The aviation ministry was not immediately available to explain how the remaining Egyptians will return. Earlier on Sunday, Egypt s foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Hafez told satellite TV channel CBC Extra that the jet is set to take off from Wuhan on Sunday evening, adding that all the returning Egyptians do not show any signs of the coronavirus. Chinese authorities are screening all travellers leaving Wuhan and have banned anyone who has symptoms of the deadly virus from leaving the city, he added. Egypt first announced on Thursday that it had allocated a special jet to evacuate Egyptian expatriates from Wuhan, the epicentre of the growing epidemic, which has killed over 300 people in China. All Egyptian travellers brought from the Chinese city will be screened and suspected cases will be quarantined, officials said. The virus has spread to other countries including the US, France, Germany, Japan, Canada, and others. More than 130 cases have been reported in around two dozen countries. Egypt s national airline EgyptAir announced last week that it was suspending all flights to and from Chinese cities, with Hangzhou flights suspended starting 1 February, and Beijing and Guangzhou flights starting 4 February. The flagship carrier added that it would resume flights to the Chinese cities according to incoming reservations and demand.

Egypt s population will hit 100 million people next week, the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) said on Saturday. The country s population reached 99.945 million at 10 a.m. (local time) on Saturday, CAPMAS added. The number excludes Egyptians abroad, which are estimated at over 9 million people. Cairo is ranked Egypt s most populated governorate with 9.924 million persons, followed by Giza with 9.75 million people then Sharqia with 7.536 million, CAPMAS pointed out. South Sinai governorate got the last place in terms of Egypt s population with about 108,742 persons, followed by North Sinai with 450,528 people and then Matrouh with 477,172, it noted. Since 2017, Egyptian officials have described the country s rapid population growth as an "actual catastrophe" that threatens national development plans and demands immediate attention, just like the country s war against terrorism. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi repeatedly said that the current rate of population growth poses a threat to the nation and restricts Egypt s progress. Last year, Egypt launched a two year initiative dubbed, "Two Is Enough", to encourage people to have fewer children. It is mainly financed locally, with the Social Solidarity Ministry spending EGP 75 million Egyptian pounds ($4.7 million) and the UN providing EGP 10 million.

Egypt denied media reports that a a suspected coronavirus case was detected in the country, as the disease continues to spark global fears. In an official statement late Wednesday, health ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed said no nCoV cases have been detected in Egypt. The denial came hours after several websites reported that a suspected coronavirus case was detected in Matrouh. A crisis management room is working 24/7 to issue official statements, follow up precautionary measures and implement a medical insurance plan to prevent the virus from reaching Egypt, he added, urging accuracy by media outlets on covering news about the virus. The epidemic has killed at least 170 people in China, with thousands infected worldwide as countries began isolating hundreds of citizens evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the disease.

The last round of the tripartite meetings called by the US administration between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam "GERD" kicked off in Washington on Tuesday , the Egyptian foreign ministry said. Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry headed for Washington on Sunday to take part in the two-day talks. The meetings, sponsored by the US and the World Bank, aim to reach an agreement on rules regulating the filling and operation of the Ethiopian dam. The talks were supposed to be concluded mid this month but the three sides failed to reach an agreement and decided to defer them to Tuesday. The three Nile basin countries remained deadlocked over the way the dam will be filled with water during droughts. Ethiopia hopes that the $4.8 billion GERD project on the Blue Nile, which has been under construction since 2011, will allow it to become Africa’s largest power exporter. Egypt, however, fears that the Ethiopian dam, which is 70 percent complete and set to be fully operational by 2022, will diminish its share of Nile water, which comprises 85 percent of the country’s water resources.

Egypt s Ministry of Health denied on Monday media reports that it will launch campaigns to inspect Chinese restaurants in seven governorates to counter Wuhan Novel Coronavirus that originated in China. In statements to the media, health ministry spokesperson Khaled Megahed denied the media reports, saying that the ministry s food supervision directorate conducts periodic campaigns to inspect food establishments nationwide to make sure they meet the required health conditions and terms in accordance with the law. On Sunday, several Egyptian news websites reported that the ministry is going to launch campaigns to inspect Chinese restaurants in seven governorates Megahed added that the Ministry of Health declared a state of emergency in all the quarantines in Egypt s airports, ports and borders as a precaution against the outbreak of the new strain of Coronavirus. The spokesperson stated that no case or suspected case of Coronavirus was recorded in Egypt.

Egypt s Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad has said that a new initiative aimed at spreading environmental awareness, dubbed Live Green, sends a strong message that environment-related issues are of national priority for the political leadership. In an interview with the state-run MENA news agency, Fouad said the initiative was launched after studies on an environmental communications strategy conducted over a year ago. The strategy was launched at the beginning of the parliament’s session at the energy and environment committee s meeting to discuss obstacles to raising awareness about environmental issues and their importance. The implementation of the initiative will take three years, she said, adding that one year is not enough to achieve environmental awareness among all citizens.

Egypt denied having any cases of the new coronavirus among its expats in China, as the epidemic of the disease sparked worry and fear globally. According to a statement by the foreign ministry, Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs and Egyptians Abroad Yasser Mahmoud Hashim said the Egyptian Embassy in Beijing is currently following up the condition of the Egyptian community in the Chinese province of Hubei and its capital Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak of the deadly virus, by directly contacting them. The embassy offers all kind of support to the expats in light of the Chinese government s decision to put Wuhan under quarantine and suspend all transportation to and from the city, Hashim noted. "There are no cases of the novel coronavirus among the Egyptian expats in the city or all of China," the diplomat affirmed, pointing out that the embassy is cooperating with the Chinese authorities to ensure that the Egyptian expats are receiving all the care and help they need. Egypt s Ambassador in Beijing Mohamed el Badry contacted a number of the community s leaders in the quarantined city, expressing his full solidarity with them and promising to provide them with all possible help. The Foreign Ministry, for its part, expressed its appreciation for the Chinese government s tremendous efforts to contain the virus, confirming its solidarity with the Chinese people and leadership during these critical circumstances.

Egypt s Cairo airport started screening passengers arriving from China for signs of the new coronavirus outbreak, airport sources said on Thursday. There are doctors and health monitors in arrival halls equipped with medical devices needed to examine passengers coming from China, the sources said. Flight attendants have also been instructed to report any coronavirus suspected cases among travellers and any suspected cases would be isolated and sent to hospital, the sources added. All airports in Egypt are on high alert and have received the same instructions, but most of the flights coming from China arrive in Cairo airport, the sources said.

Egyptian and Saudi forces started Wednesday joint naval training activities in Egypt s Red Sea, Egypt s Army spokesman said in a statement. The multi-day training, dubbed Morgan 16, aims to "enhance the skills and capabilities of the participating forces … raise combat efficiency of naval forces of both brotherly countries and identify the latest maritime armament systems used in the region," the statement said. Observers from a number of Arab and African countries are taking part in the drills. The training is part of a broader plan for joint military training between the Egyptian and Saudi armed forces designed to "enhance maritime security measures in the region through training on joint action to confront current and future threats and unify the concepts of naval combat actions of brotherly and friendly countries bordering the Red Sea," it added. The training activities involve theoretical lectures and training seminars, several tactical shooting exercises for special forces, including using small arms and conducting raids on a coastal target with live ammunition alongside sniper units.

Egypt s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said he was overwhelmed by the warm welcome Egyptian expats have shown during his participation in the UK-Africa Investment Summit, hosted by the British capital on Monday. "I was overwhelmed by the warm welcome Egyptian expats have shown during my participation in the proceedings of the UK-Africa Investment Summit in London. They are a source of pride and inspiration to us," Sisi posted on his official social media accounts. Later, the Egyptian President attended a reception held for leaders of delegations to the UK-Africa Investment Summit 2020 at Buckingham Palace. Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, hosted the reception on Monday night on behalf of British Queen Elizabeth II and in the presence of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Sisi and Johnson had chaired the opening session of the summit on Monday.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson co-chaired the inaugural session of the UK-Africa Investment Summit 2020 that kicked off in London on Monday. Egypt is attending the summit in it s capacity as the president of the African Union. President El-Sisi addressed the summit affirming Africa s willingness to cooperate with all partners including the UK. “There are promising and diverse opportunities for Africa s partners,” El-Sisi said, adding that “such opportunities make Africa one of the most important destinations for international business institutions like those in the UK.” President El-Sisi cited four pillars of cooperation that are considered a priority for African countries. The first pillar is the implementation of infrastructure development projects in African Union countries, on top of which are the Cairo-Cape Town road, which will link the north of the continent to its south, as well as renewable energy and railway projects. The second pillar, according to El-Sisi is “the activation of all the operational stages of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” as it will “enhance intraregional trade, increase international competitiveness of the continent, and create an African market that attracts foreign investment.” El-Sisi added that the third pillar is creating partnerships with the foreign and African private sector and resolving its obstacles, since it a catalyst for economic growth. The final pillar is “empowering youth and women across the continent and providing them with job opportunities,” he said. President El-Sisi stressed the importance of providing governmental guarantees to international companies to reassure investors and to encourage them to pump direct investments into Africa. El-Sisi stressed the importance of tackling the disparity in the trade balance by opening the UK market to African products, so that trade exchange becomes on a fairer basis. The UK-Africa Investment Summit 2020 aims at highlighting investment opportunities in Africa and fostering British investments in the continent. The summit is attended by heads of African states and governments, heads of international organisations, as well as officials from British and African companies.