Israeli minister repeats call for Palestinians to leave Gaza

CAIRO: Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi called for incentives to attract foreign investment and strengthen the private sector during high-level talks on Sunday.

The meeting with Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly and the Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt, Hassan Abdallah, examined the global economic outlook, as well as the Egyptian economy and the performance of the country’s banking sector.

Abdallah highlighted efforts to encourage the use of digital financial services, including the Central Bank’s decision to exempt customers from fees and commissions for electronic bank transfer services in Egyptian pounds from Jan. 1, 2024.

The move comes as part of government efforts to promote digital transformation and financial inclusion, Ahmed Fahmy, spokesman for the presidency, said.

On Saturday, El-Sisi met with Madbouly and Minister of International Cooperation, Rania Al-Mashat, to discuss economic diplomacy, as well as efforts to support and strengthen Egypt’s private sector.

Al-Mashat said that “soft loans worth $10.3 billion have been provided to the private sector in Egypt over the past four years in the form of financial and technical support.”

Fahmy said that the meeting also reviewed the annual report of the Ministry of International Cooperation, Platforms for Policy and Practice, which includes results of international partnerships with development partners and concessional development financing.

El-Sisi highlighted the key role of the private sector in Egyptian development.