Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said he is determined to confront Egypt’s debt problem by cutting state spending to align with national income, describing excessive borrowing as extremely harmful to the country’s future.
He pointed to butane gas cylinders as an example of the heavy financial burden on the state, explaining that Egypt spends around 30 billion Egyptian pounds a year to subsidize them, with national consumption reaching between 250 and 300 million cylinders annually.
President Sisi noted that the total subsidy bill currently stands at 600 billion pounds, stressing that it would have been much higher without recent government reforms. He acknowledged that the decisions taken to reduce subsidies were difficult and painful, but necessary to address Egypt’s economic challenges and long-standing poverty issues.
The president added that a country with Egypt’s rich resources should be receiving between 60 and 70 million tourists every year, compared to the current figure of around 13 million. He pledged that Egypt aims to increase tourist arrivals to 28 million in the coming years.
President Sisi also announced plans to establish a world-class media city within the next three years, emphasizing that it will be unlike anything Egypt has created before.
Addressing the country’s digital transformation efforts, President Sisi encouraged young people to benefit from national programs such as the “Digital Pioneers” initiative, designed to train Egyptians in outsourcing, computing, and remote work. The program consists of three progressive levels, ending with a qualification comparable to a master’s degree, and has already enrolled 149 participants.
He said graduates of these programs can work from home or with major companies, earning salaries ranging from 5,000 to 30,000 dollars a month opportunities he believes will strengthen Egypt’s place in the global digital economy.
President Sisi also commented on rising divorce rates, arguing that television dramas have contributed to relationship problems by showcasing extravagant lifestyles that do not reflect the realities of most Egyptians, leading some women to feel dissatisfied with their husbands and families.
