Meselhi said the state strategy depends on maintaining the strategic stock of food for at least six months with increasing the efficiency of food distribution across the republic. The minister of supply said his ministry's policy is based on some axes including finding finance to invest in commodities with the support of President Sisi which surpassed $1.8 billion till now. He stressed the importance of providing wheat as an essential commodity serving the Egyptian society, pointing out that bread serves 70 percent of the Egyptian people. He said the silo capacity increased from 1.2 million tons in 2014 to 3.4 million tons this year. The minister said the state strategy to trade in wheat reduced imports by 13 percent this year, adding the wheat stock serves the country for more than six months.

The Egyptian army announced on Sunday that it had killed 89 top terrorists in North Sinai recently, without specifying a date. It also announced that eight armed forces members were either killed or wounded during the same period. The forces discovered and destroyed 404 explosive devices on axes and main roads, as well as four explosive belts. The Egyptian army added that “the border guard, in cooperation with military engineers, succeeded in discovering and destroying 13 tunnel openings used by terrorists to infiltrate North Sinai.”The army also announced that the air force, directed preemptive strikes against terrorists along Egypt’s western border with Libya, which resulted in the destruction of 200 four-wheel drive vehicles, some of which were loaded with weapons and ammunition. The Egyptian army concluded its statement by emphasizing its determination to uproot what remains of terrorism and extremism in Egypt.

A member of the Virology Committee at the Ministry of Higher Education Adel Khattab announced Monday that initial studies show that the delta coronavirus strains still responds to existing vaccines by up to 68 percent. In a telephone interview on TeN satellite channel, Khattab said that there are fears that the delta variant will dominate in the near future due to its rapid spread across multiple countries. He warned that children are susceptible to the delta strain as well. And an Immunity and Allergy consultant at Amjad al-Haddad said that Delta variant of the coronavirus is spreading in most Arab countries, especially Libya, Tunisia and Iraq. He warned that Egyptians are behaving recklessly by thinking that the pandemic is over – the same carelessness which caused Tunisia’s healthcare system to collapse under the strain of the new delta variant.

Ahead of introducing new polymer bills into the Egyptian market, the Central Bank of Egypt confirmed that all paper currency will remain valid, without exception. In a statement, the Central Bank denied rumors that it would cancel some paper denominations in conjunction with the issuance of their polymer counterparts. According to the bank, the new polymer currency will contain, as a security feature, watermarks that only appear when moved under sunlight. The Central Bank added that the new models appearing in photos on the web are not the final version that will be released, in response to major criticism from social media users. The bank further clarified that the rainbow design that appeared on the bills is not part of the design, but rather a secure watermark feature.

Providing a third coronavirus vaccine dose in Egypt has not been decided yet, said advisor to the Minister of Health for research Noha Assem, who explained that the ministry is more interested in horizontal expansion to vaccinate the largest number of citizens. Assem said during the “Al-Hayat Al-Youm” program on Monday evening that Sinovac will be available to Egyptians within a few days. The number of citizens who received the vaccine has now approached six million, she said, and added that with the coming of local vaccine production she anticipates the number to rise even further. The third dose of the vaccine will be released within the scope of the clinical trial that Egypt has participated in, she added. According to Assem, one million doses of the Chinese Sinovac vaccine have been manufactured and produced in Egypt, and about 40 million doses are expected to be produced during this year.

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CAIRO – 3 August 2021: IHS Markit Egypt Purchasing Managers’ IndexTM (PMI) declined to 49.1 in July, down from 49.9 in June. The latest reading pointed to a slight deterioration in the health of the non-oil sector, and one that was softer than the series trend. According to PMI™ survey data, the Egyptian jobs market moved into expansion mode in July, as the data indicated a rise in employment for the first time since October 2019. However, demand receded over the latest period as some customers remained reluctant to spend amid the continued impact of the pandemic. Many businesses are now eager to boost capacity, particularly as new order growth recorded in June led to a modest pile-up of outstanding work in the latest survey period,” Economist at IHS Markit, David Owen, said.

ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland are moving quickly to appoint a new national coach a week after the departure of Vladimir Petkovic and with World Cup qualifiers only one month away, the country’s football association said on Monday. “This week the personal interviews with the candidates will take place,” said national team director Pierluigi Tami in a statement. “We are confident that we will be able to present the new national coach to the public as soon as possible,” he added. Last week, Petkovic quit after seven years in charge of the Swiss national team and taking them to the last eight of the European Championship before being beaten by Spain in a penalty shootout. The 57-year-old Petkovic signed a three-year contract with French club Girondins de Bordeaux, who begin their new Ligue 1 campaign this weekend.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry meets with Mahmoud Al-Habbash, the Palestinian Chief Justice, and the Palestinian President's advisor for Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations. Meanwhile, the Israeli Supreme Court postponed its ruling regarding the evacuation of four Jerusalemite families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem. The court was expected to issue its final decision in the case today, but the session ended in a stalemate. The court judges proposed a settlement that defines the four Palestinian families as "protected tenants" and would not be able to evict them for decades to come. In return, the Israeli settlers asked the families to acknowledge their ownership of the land and the houses, a proposal that was totally rejected by the families.

BARCELONA: Barcelona president Joan Laporta has said talks over a new deal are progressing well with forward Lionel Messi. However, Barca have reportedly offered him a new five-year deal on a reduced salary which they hope will help them meet La Liga's financial fair play (FFP) requirements. "We're doing everything possible, and it's progressing well," Laporta told a news conference on Monday. "Leo wants to stay at Barca and we'll do all we can. "We want, if possible, for La Liga to be more flexible and other European leagues have been.

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: Egypt published the first pictures of LE 10 and 20 plastic notes that will be officially issued next November from the new printing press of the Central Bank of Egypt, in the New Administrative Capital. Plastic currencies are produced from polymer, and were first used as currency-making material in Australia in 1988. The process of withdrawing worn-out banknotes from the market is carried out through the supervision of the Central Bank, by withdrawing the damaged banknote from the market and replacing it with new banknotes. The state will resort to printing the 10 and 20 pounds of polymer material; because it is the most widely traded, as plastic money is characterized as 3 times the life span of its paper or bank counterparts. Egypt’s Plastic Currency

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development highlighted Monday that given that the current fiscal year is the fourth/last year of the medium-term plan for sustainable development (18/2019 - 21/2022), the agricultural sector has been allocated 5.9 percent of public investments budget. That is equivalent to LE 73.8 billion, compared to about LE 43 billion spent in FY2019/2020, with an increase of LE39.5 billion. Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, explained that the agricultural sector and the related activities of cattle, pourtly, and fish production are the main source of food, as well as the inputs of the industrial sector. This sector is characterized by its wide geographical scope to include different governorates, and by absorbing the largest part of the workforce in rural areas. Its position in the national economy is also reinforced by the strength of its interconnectedness with other economic sectors, especially the sectors of transportation, storage, trade, and manufacturing.

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: The Egyptian Foreign Ministry launched on Monday the national report on combating terrorism for 2021 to review the state’s efforts and comprehensive approach to face the extremist ideology and terror. He added that the report touches on the legislative system to combat terrorism, including national legislation and its amendments that are consistent with Egypt's relevant international commitments. The report deals with the security efforts made to pursue terrorist organizations and undermine their ability to carry out attacks that affect the security and stability of the country. Also, the report also clarifies the efforts made to achieve sustainable development and raise the standard of citizens’ lives, taking into account the importance of the development dimension in preventing terrorism and extremism. Egypt is also keen to address the various aspects of this issue in its contacts with various countries of the world through bilateral frameworks, Fouad said.

Egypt’s Air Force is participating in Egyptian-Emirati joint air training drill “Zayed-3”, with Egyptian units having arrived Monday at the al-Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates. The spokesman for the Egyptian Armed Forces Gharib Abdel-Hafez on Facebook explained that the drill will feature several multi-task combat aircraft of various models, and comes as pat of an annual plan for joint exercises carried out by the armed forces with friendly countries. The training aims to hone the skills of the participating forces from both sides to reach the highest levels of eadiness to carry out joint tasks. It also aims to prepare them to manage air operations using the latest air weapons with high efficiency under various circumstances. The ultimate goal of the drill is in supporting and strengthening joint military cooperation between the Egyptian and Emirati armed forces through several joint exercises in various air, sea and land disciplines to hone the skills of the participating elements of both countries.

CAIRO – 2 August 2021: The selection process of candidates to join the recently launched "Intellect Imam" training program offered by the Ministry of Endowments has begun. The program aims to introduce Imams (Muslim clergymen) to other disciplines so they would be able to deliver preaches that cope with contemporary issues and reality. Candidates will sit for tests and interviews within the selection process as indicated by Minister Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa in press statements Monday.