This amount constitutes 23 percent of the bank's total loan portfolio, Kamel told MENA on Saturday. He added that out of the $2.7 billion worth of direct financing the bank has approved for Egyptian companies this year, $1.6 billion has been disbursed, while the rest is expected to be disbursed within the next few days. In addition to these direct funds, the bank has also offered indirect funding to Egyptian companies to embark on many projects in African nations, taking total funds to $5-6 billion during 2021, Kamel said. He further noted Egypt had signed $4.8 billion worth of agreements during the first four days of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF), hosted by South Africa from November 15 to 21.

CAIRO – 28 November 2021: The Ministry of Health and Population announced Sunday the reception of 3.89 million doses of Pfizer vaccine through Covax and Gavi. Cairo International Airport received on Wednesday 3,688,500 doses of the AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine, Acting Health Minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar said. The shipment, delivered through COVAX and in cooperation with the Vaccine Alliance (GAVI), comprises 2,388,500 AstraZeneca shots and 1.3 million Johnson & Johnson shots provided by the United States, Abdel Ghaffar noted. The country has received all types of vaccines worldwide, the latest of which was Moderna, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson. A total of 4.1 million Egyptian citizens are eligible for a third booster coronavirus vaccine shot six months or more after taking the second vaccine dose, Saad said.

The World Bank representative in Egypt and Senior Health Specialist Amr el-Shalakani said that the health sector receives the most support from the World Bank, pointing out that the World Bank participated in drafting the idea of the comprehensive health insurance law; passing through its preparation of the law, and then starting its implementation in Port Said. Shalakani’s remarks came during his speech to the second annual forum of the Health Care Authority, on Saturday in Ismailia, on the occasion of the two-year anniversary of the launch of the system. He added that the comprehensive health insurance system in Egypt is the first health insurance in line with environmental standards, as all hospitals operate in an environmentally friendly manner, and this is an important matter for the World Bank; noting that the system in general is a great achievement to be proud of and the World Bank will continue to support this new system. Shalakani said that he did not see a similar experience in the world of universal health coverage, which received all the support that the new system of universal health insurance enjoys, whether it was political, financial, parliamentary or even popular political support. He stressed the keenness of the leaders of the World Bank, that Egypt should remain a priority in its programs, especially the health sector.

The Chairman of Al-Ahly’s board of directors Mahmoud al-Khatib won a second term in office after securing the majority of votes in the elections held on Friday. Khatib won the president’s seat in the club’s elections for a second term for the next 4 years. Khatib received a total of 19,362 votes, while his rival Khaled Soliman received only 2,320 votes, in addition to 445 invalid votes. Mortagy received 14,201 votes, while Darandaly received 7,482 votes, and 585 invalid votes. Khatib led Ahly’s board of directors for four years, starting from December 2017 until the end of the current term in 2021.

CAIRO – 27 November 2021: Flag carrier EgyptAir announced suspending flight to Johannesburg, South Africa, after the World Health Organization classed the new coronavirus variant that emerged in southern Africa as “of concern”. EgyptAir’s suspension of flights to South Africa came in light of a decision by Egypt’s Supreme Committee for the Management of the Coronavirus Crisis chaired by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli. Those countries are South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia, and Eswatini. Dozens of cases that contracted the new variant were found in South Africa, Bostwana, Hong Kong and Belgium. Egypt’s measures against OmicronA set of measures has been approved in light of reports related to the new coronavirus variant, the health ministry has revealed.

Among this crew is Ahmad Al Morsy, who is the DOP and director of the whole epic event. Throughout his career, Al Morsy won 22 national and international awards for his work. Moreover, his film Aswar Al Amar (Walls of the Moon) is the second film in the world to be shot using an ARRI D21 camera in 2009, where Al Morsy mixed between using digital cameras and 35 mm films. Furthermore, Al Morsy was the DOP behind Vodafone’s commercial for Ramadan 2021 ‘Together we can’, marking artist Sharihan’s comeback to the screen after a 27-year hiatus. Through using uncommon visuals, Al Morsy could convey the pain the great artist went through in her life.

CAIRO - 27 November 2021: The National Committee to Eradicate Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), co-chaired by the National Council for Women (NCW) and the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM), launched a door-knocking campaign in ten governorates covered by the Decent Life presidential initiative. The campaign was launched in Gharbia, Damietta, Kafr el Sheikh, Alexandria, Qalyubia, Menoufia, Giza, Behira, Ismailia and the New Valley. The three-day campaign is aimed at raising awareness about the FGM elimination issue in a way that creates community’s rejection for such outdated practices, said Isis Mahmoud, the director-general of the NCW’s department of planning programs and awareness campaigns. It also aims to inform people about the health and mental risks posed by this crime, she added. This campaign comes in conjunction with the Global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence which focuses on raising awareness about violence against women, she said.

The Health Ministry said it detected the new strain in a traveler who had returned from Malawi and was investigating two other suspected cases. “We are currently at the threshold of an emergency situation,” he said. Israel recently expanded the campaign to include children as young as 5. But the country only recently managed to contain a wave of infections driven by the highly contagious delta variant. Israel, with a population of more than 9 million, has reported at least 8,182 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

ZURICH (Reuters) -The last two European champions, Italy and Portugal, could face off for a spot at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after they were drawn on Friday in the same path for the playoffs. The winning team from each path qualifies for the World Cup in Qatar, meaning Italy and Portugal cannot both reach the tournament. Older Wales fans still get high blood pressure thinking about the 1977 World Cup qualifier with Scotland. Scotland won 2-0 to earn a place at the World Cup in Argentina the following year. EUROPEAN PLAYOFF DRAW (HOME SIDE FIRST)Path ASemi-final 1: Scotland v UkraineSemi-final 2: Wales v AustriaPath BSemi-final 3: Russia v PolandSemi-final 4: Sweden v Czech RepublicPath CSemi-final 5: Italy v North MacedoniaSemi-final 6: Portugal v TurkeyINTERCONTINENTAL PLAYOFF DRAWAFC team v CONMEBOL teamCONCACAF team v OFC team

BRUSSELS (AP) —The European Union nations on Friday agreed to impose a ban on travel from southern Africa to counter the spread of a new COVID-19 variant. The 27 nations acted within hours upon the advise of the EU executive which said all needed to be extra cautious in dealing with the variant until it became clear how bad of a threat it would be, the EU presidency said in a statement. The EU presidency, currently held by Slovenia, also called on all member states “to test and quarantine all incoming passengers.”

KARACHI: Pakistan will play their second match of Junior Hockey World Cup 2021 against Egypt on Saturday (today) in Bhubaneswar, India. Pakistan must win this match to keep themselves in the race for quarter-finals. Pakistan lost their first match against Germany 5-2. Not only do Pakistan have to win against Egypt, they have to do so by a big margin to improve their goal average. Pakistan will play against Argentina on Sunday (tomorrow).

Netflix, one of the world’s leading entertainment services, announced that the new original Arabic series starring Hend Sabry, “al-Bahs An Ola” (Search for Ola) will be screened soon. “Search for Ola” is a new series produced by Netflix in Egypt, which is producing another series dubbed “Drama Queen” starring Abla Fahita, Caro, and Boody, expected to be released in 2021. A number of stars, including Sawsan Badr, Hany Adel, Nada Moussa, Mahmoud Elleithy, and Dalia Shawky, will take part in the series. The series tells the story of a young pharmacist named Ola Abdel Sabour in new adventures, ten years after the Sabry’s famous social series “Ayza Atgawez” (I Want to Get Married) was screened. “Search for Ola” is a new series produced by Netflix in Egypt, which is producing another series dubbed “Drama Queen” starring Abla Fahita, Caro, and Boody, expected to be released in 2021.

It is the first time the European Medicines Agency has cleared a COVID-19 vaccine for use in young children. Earlier this week, Germany’s health minister Jens Spahn said shipping of vaccines for younger children in the EU would begin on Dec. 20. The United States signed off on Pfizer’s kids-sized shots earlier this month, followed by other countries including Canada. Pfizer tested a dose that is a third of the amount given to adults for elementary school-age children. Still, WHO acknowledged that there are benefits to vaccinating children and adolescents that go beyond the immediate health benefits.

CAIRO- 26 November 2021: European Union (EU) Ambassador Christian Berger reiterated the EU's strong commitment to supporting Egypt in the field of research and innovation through its different programs of knowledge sharing, capacity building and financial support. His comments were given during the 8th meeting of the EU-Egypt Joint Committee on Scientific and Technological (S&T) Cooperation. The officials exchanged information and engaged in discussions to ensure the sustainability of EU-Egypt R&I cooperation. The two sides took note of recent research and innovation (R&I) policy developments in both Egypt and the EU. Also, representatives from the Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Academy of scientific research, technology and Science and Technology Development Fund.

Egyptian Minister of Petroleum Tarek El Molla meets with Israeli Minister of Energy Karine Elharrar, on the sidelines of the sixth ministerial meeting of the East Mediterranean Gas Forum- press photo. CAIRO- 26 November 2021: Egypt and Israel signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for increasing the gas supplies for re-exporting, announced the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources in a statement. As per the new MoU, both sides would use an existing pipeline to transport hydrogen in the future, as they agreed to possibly increase gas supplies for re-export within the framework of cooperation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the region. The member countries of the East Mediterranean Gas Forum have agreed that confronting climate change and providing clean energy sources have become a necessity, said Molla on Thursday. Therefore, “we need to build on the topics we discussed at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) to support the global trend to achieve sustainable development,” he added.