Before the pandemic, Ahmed Ali and his wife Sherine used to go to the cinema every weekend. Now, it’s just once a month. To entertain themselves throughout 2020, 48-year-old Ali, already a Netflix subscriber, paid for three additional streaming platforms — Shahid VIP, Watch iT!, and Amazon Prime — to watch new films and series. He has no plans to cancel the annual EGP 6,400 worth of streaming subscriptions, even as movie theaters operate at full capacity in every corner of the city. “As long as we have new shows to watch at home, we’re less excited to leave the…
Author: Ola Noureldin
Egypt has a population of more than 100 million, making it the 14th most populated country in the world. But currently, only 8% of its 1 million square kilometers is inhabited, with most of the population crowded into the Cairo, Alexandria, and Giza governorates. In a bid to absorb the rapidly growing population, increase housing and job opportunities, and improve the overall quality of life, Egypt is in the process of constructing 22 new fourth generation cities to accommodate around 30 million people across nearly every part of the country. Once complete, these new cities will grow inhabited land area…
Nexta, the brainchild of Ibrahim Farag and Ahmed Hisham, promises an efficient digital banking experience for Egyptians by using technology and data to identify new opportunities based on a consumer’s lifestyle. Users will receive a Nexta card, powered by Visa, which will aggregate their existing payment cards. The Nexta card will eliminate the hassle of carrying multiple payment cards. On the Nexta app, users can make transactions like money transfers and bill payments. In short, Nexta aims to redefine the meaning of user experience in Egypt by introducing “next-generation banking.” Investor interest in fintech across emerging markets has been on…
Among the three companies listed on the healthcare and pharmaceuticals sector index on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX), Cleopatra Hospital Groups (CHG) holds the lowest weighted average at 26.2 percent. The two other companies are the Egyptian International Pharmaceuticals Industries (EIPCO) and Ibn Sina Pharma. They hold 42.29 percent and 31.51 percent, respectively. Investors currently only have CHG as the primary EGX listed hospital firm. It’s generally seen as an attractive proposition with operations secured by expanding demand for healthcare services and the firm’s multiple expansion projects. CHG is the biggest private sector hospital group in Egypt, with a total of…
The aim of gender equality in the workplace is to achieve broadly equal opportunities and outcomes for women and men, not necessarily outcomes that are exactly the same for all. Workplace gender equality will be achieved when people are able to access and enjoy equal rewards, resources and opportunities regardless of gender. It will require workplaces to provide equal pay for work of equal or comparable value. The removal of barriers to the full and equal participation of women in the workforce. Access to all occupations and industries, including leadership roles, regardless of gender; and the elimination of discrimination on…
It will take 257 years to reach gender equality in economic participation and opportunity, according to the World Economic Forum 2020 Global Gender Gap Report. The report shows that while other metrics of gender equality have improved (education attainment and health are close to parity, for example), the economic participation and opportunity metric has regressed to 57.8%. As the world honors another International Women’s Day on March 8, women in Egypt and the MENA region continue to be significantly under-represented in leadership, facing wage inequalities and bias in recruitment, hiring and promotions. Plenty of steps can — and must —…
More than half of Cairo’s municipal waste is collected by the informal sector, which consists of 50,000 waste processors and 150,000 collectors, sorters, traders and truck drivers. Of all the municipal waste collected, 80% gets recycled, including 290,000 tons of plastic per year. Cairo’s waste collectors (zabbaleen) have gathered, sorted and recycled the city’s trash for more than 60 years. Yet, their key role in the city’s circular economy has gone unacknowledged. Today, that is changing. DORNA, a system supported by multinational corporations and the government, puts the zabbaleen’s work in the spotlight and empowers their businesses with the help…
“Egypt still needs many more beds to be added to its capacity and we need enough investments to build this.” Egypt’s healthcare industry remains attractive to both local and international investors, with many areas for development and expansion. The sector enjoys a strong workforce with a high number of doctors, specialists and nurses, as well as attractive prices from a global perspective. Even though the market is highly fragmented with most healthcare facilities in Cairo, it still represents solid investment opportunities. In January 2020, Assem El Gazzar, Minister of Housing, Utilities and Urban Communities, laid the foundation stone for CapitalMED,…
Sustainability, whether a home or city, is learning how to efficiently manage what we have in a way that suits the people living, be it in a home or in a city. Continuing population growth is projected to add 2.5 billion people to the world’s urban population by 2050. In fact, more than 1 million people a week are moving to urban environments and by 2050 more than two-thirds of the world’s population will live in cities. This massive urbanization presents many challenges in terms of health and wellbeing, safety and overall quality of life due to such issues as…
Private sector investments in education in Egypt are of paramount importance. Over the past decade, the country witnessed a steady increase in the appetite of private equity funds and investors to capitalize on the industry. This appeal is due to ever-increasing enrollment. In the 2016/17 school year, the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics reported total K-12 enrollment at 20.6 million. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Middle East Report, at the current growth rate 2.4 million additional seats in grades 1-12 will be needed by 2022/23. To stimulate the economy and address chronic congestion in Cairo, the government announced the establishment…