Funding options for consumers and companies have increased significantly with the rise of innovative tools and new business models. Their common standout feature is that those next-generation lenders are unregulated by central banks, enabling them to finance a broader consumer base than traditional commercial banks. “The growth of the [non-bank financial institutions] sector accelerated after the global financial crisis, accounting now for nearly 50% of global financial assets,” the IMF said in April 2023. Those private credit providers have a noticeable impact on any economy. A paper from the European Central Bank (ECB) in 2021 noted, that while “bank loans…
Author: Tamer Hafez
As most would attest, Egypt is a prime destination for holiday tourism, with nearly 2,500 kilometers of shoreline on the Red and Mediterranean seas and more than 3,000 years of recorded history. According to WP Travel, a tour operator, Egypt ranked between 14th and 21st on the list of most visited nations between 2020 and 2023. The country’s diverse economy also makes it a destination for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) in the Middle East and Africa. Mahmoud Kaoud, associate director of hotels and tourism at Colliers International, an investment firm, told local media in August that MICE tourism…
For African nations, an important takeaway from the COVID-19 pandemic is the need to be self-sufficient in developing, producing, and distributing medicines and vaccines. “The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for a regionally sourced, quality-assured supply of [medicines and vaccines] on the continent,” an October 2023 report from the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), a Swiss nonprofit, said. “Producing quality medicines close to patients who need them most will save lives and accelerate human and economic progress.” That target was envisioned in the Africa Agenda 2063 document. It is also a “main goal of the Africa Health Strategy 2016-2030 through…
When COVID-19 hit in 2020, the world went into shock at how fast it spread, how difficult it was to treat, how many died from it, and its long-term health effects (long COVID). UN Secretary-General António Guterres called it a “once-in-a-lifetime pandemic.” Since then, many governments have taken note of the deficiencies COVID-19 exposed and started fixing them. In May, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), said that while “there continues to be major progress in global health [since COVID], we must remember how fragile [that] progress can be.” On the other hand, “we’re…
It has become increasingly common for local pharmacists to tell walk-in customers a medicine is not in stock, recommending a near-identical alternative, one with a lower active ingredient concentration and upping the dosage, or searching for a pharmacy that may have the prescribed item. A July memo from the Pharmaceuticals Division at the Federation of Egyptian Industries said more than 800 types of medicines were in short supply. National news platform Ahram Online reported a “severe shortage [in] many chronic and non-chronic disease medications.” Another memo, issued around the same time by the Chamber of Industry of Cosmetics & Medical…
Electricity generation and prices in Egypt have been hot topics this summer. In August, Reuters reported the government increased residential electricity prices for the second time this year. This time, the hike was between 14.8% and 50%. The news wire service said the move came as “the country grappled with power shortages [and] high cooling demand driving up consumption.” The other big issue that led to “load-shedding to keep the grid functioning” was that Egypt only “received five cargoes … of liquefied natural gas out of 21 cargoes … it had contracted for.” The increase in electricity prices is also…
The launch of ChatGPT in late 2022 made AI a staple tool for business executives and corporate decision-makers. It is “not something businesses can simply ignore,” said a February research note from Thomson Reuters. It is especially critical for companies with international footprints, as they plan and manage operations in diverse geographies where governments can have diverging policies and strategies. “It’s important to understand what [AI] is and how it can help companies that engage in global trade,” the report noted. Benefiting fully from AI in global trade will prove more difficult than in other uses, said a white paper…
Inaugurated in 1869, the Suez Canal, which connects the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, has always been essential for Egypt’s economy, consistently ranking among the top sources of government revenue, according to the Central Bank (CBE). Since December, that income has been declining as a result of Yemen-based Houthi rebels firing on Israel-affiliated freighters crossing the Red Sea’s southern strait (Bab el-Mandeb), demanding an end to the war in Gaza. That has led freighters to seek alternatives. A July note from Maersk estimated that freight traffic on the Red Sea has dropped 66% since January 2022, when freight companies…
Egypt is preparing to submit a proposal to the International Olympic Committee for the 2036 Games as part of the government’s efforts to establish goals for developing the sports industry over the next 12 years. Competing for the right to host the Summer Olympic Games would cost “a pretty penny” to build the necessary infrastructure and facilities to accommodate athletes and millions of visitors. The BBC reported nearly 15.3 million people entered host nation France this summer to watch the games live. According to Market Watch, an economic platform, the country spent about $8.2 billion preparing the country for the…
With 3,000 kilometers of shoreline on the Mediterranean and Red Sea, a canal that has witnessed up to 12% of global trade traverse it, and a location that connects Europe, Asia, and Africa, Egypt has all the makings of a regional trade hub. However, the country is not capitalizing on its full potential. It ranked 84th out of 88 nations in the International Trade Barrier 2023 report published by the Tholos Foundation, a U.S. educational nonprofit. The World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index 2023 ranked Egypt 57th out of 138. A report by the Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC) in…