President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and King Philippe Leopold of Belgium at the Royal Palace of Brussels on February 17, 2022. Press PhotoCAIRO – 17 February 2022: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi met Wednesday with King Philippe Leopold of Belgium at the Royal Palace of Brussels during his state visit to attend the 6th European Union-African Union Summit scheduled for Thursday. Spokesperson of the Egyptian Presidency Bassam Rady indicated in a press statement that the king commended the extended historical ties between Belgium and Egypt, stipulating his country's keenness on developing bilateral relations on all levels. The king also lauded the pivotal role assumed by Egypt in the realm of establishing stability in the Middle East and Africa, particularly in terms of combating illegal migration, terrorism, religious coexistence, and backing peaceful solutions to regional crises. On his side, the president noted that Belgian-Egyptian cooperation has recently grown, expressing aspiration to expand economic and trade partnerships between both states through, particularly, enlarging the size of Belgian investments in Egypt.

The Cabinet Media Center in Egypt denied on Wednesday reports from social media claiming that COVID-19 vaccines are available in pharmacies. The Media Center contacted the Ministry of Health and Population, which also denied the claims and stressed that there is no grounds for providing coronavirus vaccines in pharmacies. The center confirmed that the various types of coronavirus vaccines are provided and made available only within the centers designated to receive vaccines across the country. The Media Center appealed to various media outlets and social media users to investigate accuracy and objectivity in publishing news, and to communicate with the concerned authorities to check before publishing information that is not based on any facts. To report any rumors or false information, please send it to the WhatsApp numbers of the Cabinet Media Center (01155508688 -01155508851) 24 hours a day, seven days a week, or via e-mail ([email protected]).

CAIRO – 16 February 2022: The ancient city of Thebes was one of the most important and richest cities in ancient Egypt. For long periods of ancient Egyptian history, Thebes was the religious and political capital of the country. Hypostyle hall, Temple of Luxor, Thebes, Egypt. Ramesseum, Thebes, Egypt. Stephen Fullard-Emrys-CameronCreative Commons Legal CodeThe Colossi of Memnon at Madīnat Habu in Thebes, Egypt.

Egypt’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Acting Minister of Health Khaled Abdel Ghaffar announced during a Wednesday cabinet meeting that the Molnupiravir antiviral drug will be provided in government pharmacies. The Cabinet also reviewed a report from Abdel Ghaffar regarding developments in the epidemiological situation of the coronavirus locally and internationally. Abdel Ghaffar also touched on the current situation of contracting and supplying coronavirus vaccines, stating that the total volume of vaccines both consumed and available amounted to 140.5 million doses. The total consumed doses of the coronavirus vaccines amounted to 67.7 million doses, with 29.2 million people who have been fully immunized with the first and second doses and more than 811,000 people with booster doses. He added more than 73.9 million doses, sufficient for more than 52 million citizens were available.

CAIRO – 16 February 2022: The recovery rate from the coronavirus (COVID-19) at Egyptian isolation hospitals reached 85 percent, after receiving the necessary medical care according to the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO), said the Ministry of Health in a statement on Wednesday. Last month, the Cairo International Airport received 4 million coronavirus vaccine doses from the United Kingdom, according to the British Ambassador to Egypt Gareth Bayley. The United States of America announced on Sunday sending to Egypt a new delivery of 1.8 million doses of Pfizer vaccine, funded by the US government. “So far, the US has delivered more than 21 million high-quality U.S. vaccine doses that will help protect the people of Egypt from coronavirus,” said the US embassy in Cairo. On 16 January 2022, Egypt received 3 million doses of Pfizer Coronavirus vaccine, provided by the US, through COVAX in cooperation with GAVI Alliance.

The Ministry of Transport plans to apply a unified ticket for mass transportation, to include the railway, metro, monorail and all electric trains. Youm7 published nine points about the planned unified ticket as follows:1- The unified ticket is similar to the smart card currently used at metro stations. 2- The unified ticket will allow the passengers to use the railway, metro, monorail and electric trains. 7- The unified ticket aims to facilitate easier procedures for citizens so they do not have to stand in queues at ticket booking windows in stations. 8- The unified ticket will be first applied with the start of operating the electric train.

CAIRO – 15 February 2021: Access Program of the U.S. embassy in Cairo was launched Monday, taking 160 young Egyptian students in a two-year journey of learning English and other skills essential for their character building. The class from Cairo included 20 visually impaired students, and their facilitator was Dr. Maged Rushdy, a visually impaired AMIDEAST teacher. The U.S. embassy partners with AMIDEAST and the American University in Cairo to hold Access. The program teaches English, but also presentation and computer skills, and tackles community service and leadership. Alshaimaa Sayed, a student from Hurghada who is originally from Qena, Upper Egypt, told Egypt Today how the program, only six months in so far, has changed her attitude outside of Access.

The ninth session of the Aswan International Festival of Culture and Arts was inaugurated in the city of Aswan on Tuesday and is scheduled to continue until February 22, coinciding with the phenomenon of the sun falling perpendicular on the sanctuary of the Temple of Abu Simbel. The activities began with a parade of boats in the Nile River in the city of Aswan, amid international and local participation of folklore troupes. Eighteen folklore troupes, comprising 400 male and female artists and including eight international troupes, will present their performances at the opening of the festival Tuesday evening, at Fawzy Fawzy Theater in Aswan. The artistic troupes participating in the ninth session of the Aswan International Festival of Culture and Arts are from Bangladesh, Palestine, Sudan, Sri Lanka, Greece, Poland and Mexico, along with 11 Egyptian troupes from Aswan, Port Said, Sohag, Marsa Matruh, Sohag, Minya, Sharqiya and Arish.

CAIRO - 15 February 2022:Al Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed el Tayyeb has emphasized the importance of constant coordination among religious institutions in the world, especially as regards pressing and emerging issues. Tayyeb voiced hope that the 32nd conference of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs would come out with recommendations that help spread the concept of citizenship regardless of creed, color or gender. Al Azhar imam made the remarks as he received Minister of Awqaf Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa, in addition to a delegation of Islamic affairs ministers, muftis, and top scholars taking part in the conference. The meeting discussed joint cooperation between Al Azhar and the Ministry of Awqaf on qualifying imams and preachers from inside and outside Egypt, the role of Al Azhar international academy in training and qualifying imams and preachers, in addition to the need to continue developing training programs to meet the relevant needs of each society. It also touched on the role of Azhar institutes in Muslim countries in spreading true values of the Islamic religion.

CAIRO – 14 February 2022: Deputy Cairo Governor Gihane Abdel Moneim stated Monday that Beni Helal slum area located near Cairo Citadel Aqueduct has been entirely demolished. The area consisted of 164 flat-buildings housing a total of 618 families, who were granted fully-furnished residential units at Al Asmarat neighborhood lying Eastern Cairo. Asmarat is the largest alternative-housing project in Egypt, consisting of three phases containing a total 18,420 units. The cost of constructions in Asmarat alone is LE3.6 billion, while the value of the land on which it is built is LE2.5 billion.

CAIRO - 14 February 2022: Minister of Economy and Trade of the Libyan Government of National Unity Mohamed al-Hawij said Saturday that the Libyan market is open for all investors, adding that his country is eager to benefit from the Egyptian development experiment. Speaking to MENA on the sidelines of a conference to announce the resuming of Libya’s membership in the Council of Arab Economic Unity, al-Hawij said the Libyan market is open for all investors, with the aim of restoring the Arab trade competitiveness. The Libyan minister said that Libya has restored its stability after agreeing on the new government and all the Egyptian companies and labor could return to the country. The Libyan High Council of State (HCS) will hold a meeting on Saturday to vote on a new roadmap to solve the political crisis in the North African country. The new roadmap was set by the Libyan High Council of State and the Parliament.

CAIRO - 13 February 2022: Minister of Planning and Economic Development Hala el Said said on Sunday that the report titled: "Financing Sustainable Development in Egypt" is the first of its kind to deal with development finance at the national level. Delivering a speech on this occasion, Said said the report was developed under the umbrella of the Arab League, which chose Egypt to be the first country to prepare the report. Despite recent successes attained in Egypt, the issue of development finance remains one of the main challenges facing the country, she noted. Said pointed out that the 13-chapter report is characterized by comprehensiveness, presenting an objective and in-depth analysis of various development finance issues that affect the achievement of the UN sustainable development goals. The report provides an analytical review of various development and economic sectors and their impact on the development situation in Egypt, she noted.

MADRID (Reuters) - A last-minute goal from substitute Mario Hermoso gave Atletico Madrid victory in a seven-goal thriller as they beat Getafe 4-3 at home on Saturday. Luis Suarez won the first of three first-half penalties within the first 10 minutes, however his spot-kick was saved by Getafe keeper David Soria. Nevertheless, Atletico appeared in control as strikes from Angel Correa and Matheus Cunha put them 2-0 up after 27 minutes. However, the reigning champions fell behind after a mad 15 minutes in which they conceded two penalties for handball. Borja Mayoral and a Enes Unal double from the spot put the visitors into an unlikely lead before Correa equalised in added-on time at the end of the first half.

of Tourism & AntiquitiesCAIRO – 13 February 2022: Under the title "Top Ten Countries with the Most Wonderful Tourist Places", The Travel, one of the famous tourism portals, chose the Egyptian tourist destinations among the best tourist destinations to visit. The site explained that Egypt possesses countless archaeological and tourist sites that distinguish it from any other place in the world. The site also noted that there are many other tourist and archaeological sites in Egypt, including Siwa Oasis, Valley of the Kings, and Abu Simbel Temples. The Travel list further includes Greece, Germany, Mauritius, Italy, Austria, Egypt, Kenya, Finland, Costa Rica and Montenegro. It is worth mentioning that the Daily Telegraph ranked Egypt the second most popular destination among British citizens in 2022, and the traveling site, Tripadvisor, chose Hurghada among the top 10 tourist destinations to visit in 2022.

CAIRO – 12 February 2022: Egypt seeks to produce 42 percent of its power from renewable resources, a large portion of which would be solar power, Ghada El-Gendy, the Executive Director of the Arab Renewable Energy Company, affiliated with the Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI). Egypt has a pioneering experience in implementing a solar power plant in Uganda under the supervision of the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy, Gendy said in an interview with Extra News. Hamza told CBC that all countries that have an electric interconnection with Egypt will benefit from the cooperation. Europe needs electric power and Africa has huge amounts of renewable energy resources, he said, adding that Egypt’s energy sector has a bright future. Despite the energy Egypt is exporting to several countries, there is a surplus of 11,000 megawatts, which Egypt rather calls “reserve,” according to Hamza.