Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and happy Sunday. We’re off to a rather slow start to the week as far as the domestic news cycle goes, giving us no significant or major news to speak of so far today.
THE BIG STORY ABROAD
Not much has changed since we last wrote to you this morning, with the Houthi attack on a fuel tanker operated by a multinational corporation carrying Russian fuel continuing to lead headlines in the international press after putting 3 mn barrels of Russian crude oil and fuel headed for Asia at risk daily, says Bloomberg.The Friday missile strike comes as a surprise because non-American, British, and Israeli ships were said to be exempt from attacks, senior Houthi official Muhammed Al Bukhaiti previously said, considering Moscow’s alliance with Tehran.
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** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:
S&P sees a devaluation in our future: S&P Global Ratings is expecting authorities to devalue the EGP to half its current value to unlock the remainder of the IMF package.
Gov’t gears up to sell off or repurpose state-owned properties: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi issued a decree that will see the government transfer its ownership of a set of ministerial headquarters to the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE).
Houthis hit Russian fuel tanker: Houthi fighters carried out a fresh round of attacks on vessels sailing through the Red Sea over the weekend, hitting a ship carrying Russian fuel operated by multinational commodities trader Trafigura.
CORRECTION: In the Egypt AM issue this morning, we mistakenly reported that the Finance Ministry wanted to issue EGP-denominated bonds on the Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX), instead of denominated in the local currency of Hong Kong. The story has been updated on our website.
*** It’s Inside Industry day —your weekly briefing of all things industrial in Egypt. Inside Industry focuses each Sunday on what it takes to turn Egypt into a manufacturing and export powerhouse, ranging from initial investment and planning to product distribution, through to land allocation to industrial processes, supply chain management, labor, automation and technology, inputs and exports, regulation and policy.
In today’s issue: Facing a combination of higher fodder prices leading to lower milk output, and a fragmented industry that lacks adequate quality standard enforcement, dairy producers in Egypt are struggling to keep up with rising costs while protecting quality.
⛅ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Look out for a partly sunny, partly cloudy day with a high of 18°C and a low of 12°C in the evening, according to our favorite weather app.
Hearing-impaired children may regain some hearing thanks to a gene therapy breakthrough,reports Science. Since October, there have been news of children who had been born without the ability to hear and have started hearing: One from Morocco who was treated by Eli Lilly and five from China, according to The Lancet. Updates from two other teams working on the gene therapy are expected next week at the Annual Association for Research in Otolaryngology meeting, says the article.
The treatment acts as the missing puzzle piece. The therapy employstwo harmless viruses that carry parts of the OTOF gene which are injected into the subject’s cochlea, explains the MIT Technology Review. In there, the hairlike cells that transmit sound reside but are inactive, as Otoferlin, the protein that links the transmission of sound and relays it to our brains, is missing. When the virus begins to work, that link is restored because it releases the missing protein, and hey presto, the individual should be able to hear.
But there’s still a long way to go: While the therapy is groundbreaking, it’s not going to work for everyone. First, subjects have to already have hair cells in their ears for the gene to be able to work — and that’s likely to be the case for trials conducted over the next few years. Novartis (unsuccessfully) tried to figure out a way to regenerate these hair cells in adults who had lost them. More recently, Frequency Therapeutics tried to do the same but also fell short of a breakthrough. More than 100 genes can be responsible for hearing loss, so there is no one-size-fits-all treatment.
There are some caveats for children too: For one, human brains can’t learn to interpret speech after the age of five, which means that the Moroccan boy from Eli Lilly’s study could technically hear frequencies but wasn’t able to understand them, says the New York Times. For the children in China, however, who had partial hearing, some with cochlear implants, were able to improve their hearing and speech.
The future is still uncertain: It’s still too early to tell just how much these children’s understanding of speech will improve and for how long, says Lawrence Lustig, a gene therapist at Columbia University quoted in Science. It’s also possible that gene expression could dwindle or the body could fight off the ear’s response, scientists add.
The hope is that newborns who fail hearing tests could quickly be tested for the OTOF mutation and be treated as soon as possible. Some researchers even hope to treat inherited hearing difficulty prenatally, if they are able to conduct fetal genetic testing. This would be a big development here in Egypt, if it becomes readily available, where 4.2% of our population is hearing impaired.
This probably isn’t the kind of information you want to hear (or read), but we probably don’t know the healthy limit to our caffeine intake. Ingesting a dangerous dose of caffeine is unlikely from just a few cups of coffee, but our favorite addiction has inspired products that are easily accessible and equally life-threatening, according to The Atlantic. These products deliver high doses of caffeine that can result in caffeinism — a state of intoxication that may have dangerous side effects, such as seizures, tachycardia, or even death.
The concerning development? Caffeine is now being made readily available in massive doses, and in slightly questionable formats.
Take high-caffeine energy drinks, for example. These beverages have long been under scrutiny for their adverse health benefits,but newer entries to the market pose an even greater threat. Last year, the American café chain Panera launched Charged Lemonade — an ultra-caffeinated drink that contains four times the amount of a regular cup of coffee and has, so far, allegedly caused two deaths and permanent heart problems in consumers.
And don’t get us started on snortable coffee: The turn of the year saw the rise of snortablecaffeine. This product, which was sold on Amazon, and has struggled to keep up with demand since its launch, and describes itself as an energy supplement. There is even a nasal spray, Turbo Snort, that promises to deliver 400 hours of energy and is available for purchase.
This consumption of caffeine is alarming and dangerous: Aside from normalizing the use of hard drugs through its packaging, medical professionals worry it’s easy to overconsume. Caffeine ingested through food and drinks are slower to absorb, giving a slow release of energy. People indulging in snortable caffeine won’t be able to gauge how much they’ve consumed, making them more susceptible to caffeinism-induced complications.
Boston Strangler is the true story of unsolved murders in the 60s. If you’re not familiar with the true story of the reign of terror that gripped the streets of the US in the 60s, Disney+ presents a two-hour true-crime thriller from the perspective of two women journalists, Loretta (Keira Knightley) and Jean (Carrie Coon), who were known as the only women tackling the murder case.
The Boston Strangler was a notorious US serial killer linked to 13 murders of womenaged 19-85 in Boston during the early 1960s. Although Albert DeSalvo confessed to all 13 murders, forensic evidence only connected him to the last victim. But this film insinuates that maybe there was more than one culprit and that they may have had psychological trauma that contributed to his motif.
The two journalists, who originally named the killer, played a crucial role in solving the case. They forced authorities to address their neglect and acknowledge the murders and the threat the killer posed to women — especially at a time when male dominance reigned.
Investigation vs the rise of women journalists? While it might be informative regarding timeline and occurrences, many agree that the dynamics of the women journalists in the workforce might’ve taken away from the actual investigation. One news outlet said that “ The chill of fear is missing ” and the others called it the “ chasing of the byline.”
WHERE TO WATCH IT- You can watch the Boston Strangler on Disney+.
Related
⚽ Egypt and the DRC: Who will bag their first victory? Egypt will play the Democratic Republic of Congo in the Afcon’s Round of 16 at 10pm. Both teams managed to qualify with a tie, and three points from three draws each. The match’s victor will progress to the quarter finals to face off against whoever comes out on top from the Equatorial Guinea vs. Guinea match at 7pm.
Nigeria eliminated Cameroon from the tournament yesterday after a clean 2-0 game, setting them up for a meeting in the round of eight with Angola who qualified by defeating Namibia (3-0).
… in the Asian Cup: The round of 16 kicked off today with Australia beating Indonesia 4-0. Later, the UAE will play Tajikistan at 6pm.
Liverpool will go head-to-head with Norwich City in the Round of 32 (aka the fourth round) of the FA cup at 4:30pm. As for the rest of the matches to catch:
Watford vs Southampton (4pm)
Newport vs Man U (6:30pm)
The major European leagues are still going strong with the following key matches:
Atlético Madrid vs Valencia (La Liga, 10pm)
Lazio vs Napoli (Serie A, 7pm)
Fiorentina vs Inter Milan (Serie A, 9:45pm)
Dortmund vs Bochum (Bundesliga, 6:30pm)
Paris Saint-Germain vs Stade Brestois (Ligue 1, 9:45pm)
Related
? OUT AND ABOUT- (all times CLT)
SPORTS-
Watch the African Cup on the big screen: Mivida is hosting The Stadium, screening Afcon matches. The Lake District is within arm’s reach in case you need to fuel up before or after the matches. More of a doer? The Stadium is also hosting sports activities you can partake in. You can book your tickets through Ticketsmarche.
ART-
Motion Art Gallery’s posthumous exhibition for artist Mahmoud Moussa is a must-visit. The artist’s iconic sculptures are on display in the gallery in Zamalek, everyday except Fridays until 5 February. That’s sooner than you think, so head on over tomorrow or mark it down.
Picasso Art Gallery has opened its doors to solo exhibitionist Hicham Rahma. Each of his paintings will exhibit “mixed tales with rich folkloric elements” with “magical strangeness and astonishing interaction.” This exhibition opens from 11am to 9pm, except for Sundays, until Friday, 2 February. Click here for more information.
BOOKS-
The Cairo International Book Fair opens its doors today, and will be running until Tuesday, 6 February. The event is open to the general public from 10am to 8pm, except Thursday and Friday, when their doors will close at 9pm. The fair is taking place at the Egypt International Exhibitions Center in the Fifth Settlement, New Cairo.
MUSIC-
Warm up your vocal cords, gang. Karaoke Night is back at ROOM Art Space and Cafe. ROOM’s doors are open every Tuesday through to 27 February for you and your friends to belt out your favorite tunes, starting at 8pm and ending at 10pm. You can reserve your spot here.
Don’t miss the Egyptian Mawlawi Sufi group, AlMawlaweya AlMasreya, singing and Sufi chanting on the Theatro stage in Arkan on Thursday, 1 February. Doors will open at 7:30pm and the event will begin at 8pm. Click here to book your tickets.
The Grand Egyptian Museum will be hosting Tunisian songstress Emel Mathlouthi on Friday, 9 February, giving you plenty of time to grab a ticket. The Voices of Hope concert will start promptly at 9pm.
Oud player Saad Al Oud and his band will be playing at Theatro Arkan, on Saturday, 17 February. The night of classical Egyptian music will open its doors from 7:30pm and begin at 8pm. You can get your tickets at Ticketsmarche.
FOOD-
If you missed the cheese fondue brunch at Villa Belle Epoque you can plan to be there tomorrow.This takes place every Monday and Wednesdayuntil 28 February from 2-6pm. The meal is reservation only. Click here to find out how to book your spot.
Indulge your Mexican cravings at Cairo Jazz Club’s Taco Tuesday next Tuesday, 30 January from 7pm. Gather your work buddies or friends and enjoy a night of unlimited tacos and cool drinks. For reservations message their Facebook page.
PHOTOGRAPHY-
The Fujifilm festival starts next Thursday, 1 February, and runs until Sunday, 4 February. You’ll have four full days of activities, meetups, and talks, as well as a photography contest and an exhibition that you can partake in. You can bring your camera along to get a gratuitous CMOS and lens cleaning and check out the GFX 100 ii Studio on-site. Fujifilm X-Photographers and creators will be there too — don’t miss out on the networking potential. Check out their Facebook page for more information.
LATER-
SHOPPING-
Cairo Vintage Souq is back with more old finds for you to scavenge. Bring your thrifting skills to Al Ismaelia venue in Downtown Cairo from 12pm till 9pm on Saturday, 3 February to get the best retro and vintage finds. For more information go to their instagram page.
MUSIC-
End the month on the dance floor at Cairo Jazz Club’s Wednesday Night Live event next Wednesday, 31 January from 9pm. The night will have Riffs sha’bi tunes, El Waili with his top hits, and Donia Wael for soothing wrap up. Message their Facebook page for reservations.
Renowned musician and composer Omar Khairat will be gracing the stage again at the Egyptian Opera House for two nights starting Wednesday, 21 February and Thursday, 22 February at the Grand Theatre at 8pm. Get your ticket for the first night here and the second night here.
Hamza Namira will be dropping his album at a concert hosted by ZED park on Friday, 9 February at 8pm. The park’s gates will open at 2pm but the concert gates will open later at 6pm. You can get your tickets here, with the option of regular standing, VIP standing, or VIP seated.
POETRY-
Amr Hassan will be performing at El Sawy Culturewheel for their annual end of winter show. Alongside his band, he will perform two concerts on Friday, 16 February, one at 3:30pm and one at 7pm. Find out more here.
THEATER-
In another of Mahmoud Saad’s live interviews, Ashraf Abdelbaki will be featured on stage on Saturday, 17 February. Accompanying entertainment will be provided by Mai Farouk. Before you grab a ticket, keep in mind that this is a phone-free, filmed experience, meaning that you should expect to hand your phone over at the gate and be seen by friends and family on their TV screens at home.
SPORTS-
The Cairo Half Marathon is taking place in just over a month: Mark your calendars for Friday, 1 March, and start stretching. Cairo Runners is bringing back a fan favorite, offering 5km, 10km, and 21km runs as well as a Family Run. Tickets are available until 27 February, giving you ample time to convince seven of your friends to join, which will get a 10% reduction in price when you register.
It’s time to put it to rest… A Hot Dog Is a Sandwich. In this culinary-themed podcast, chef hosts Josh Scherer and Nicole Enayati explore food beyond the mastery of cooking. They delve into the cultural origins of the dishes they prepare, incorporating personal experiences and deep culinary knowledge into each episode.
Outlandish (but… kinda logical?) arguments like “cake is like lasagna” will come up — but Scherer tends to challenge cooking norms, whereas Enayati likes the more traditional aspect of cooking — which all the foodies who exist among us would appreciate.
The hosts might be perceived as bickering couples in the kitchen. In the end, the entertaining ambiance, challenging food norms, and debunking of culinary myths offer a refreshing and engaging perspective on food.
The EGX30 rose 3.5% at today’s close on turnover of EGP 6.2 bn (92% above the 90-day average). Foreign investors were net buyers. The index is up 15% YTD.
In the green: Alexandria Containers and Cargo Handling (+17%), Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals Company (+16.9%) and Oriental Weavers (+15.7%).
In the red: GB Corp (-3.5%), ADIB Egypt (-2.4%) and Edita (-1.4%).
Faced with rising input costs, our dairy industry is struggling to keep up: The dairy industry in Egypt is looking for solid footing with the help of the government to lure in investments that could propel the industry to higher productivity rates and boost exports. Industry players Enterprise spoke with pointed to a shortage of high-quality milk, tough competition from a large (and largely informal) sector thanks to small factories, and rising costs.
The sector, by the numbers: Egypt produced around 7 mn tons of dairy by the end of 2022. Out of 18k food-related businesses registered with the Chamber of Food Industries, 1,590 of those are members of the dairy and dairy products division. The majority of our dairy production is concentrated in Beheira, which produces 534.8k tons, followed by Damietta (221.8k tons) and Menoufia (138.1k tons). We also have 826 milk collection centers across the country, according to Agriculture Ministry data.
One bid to ensure healthy + better quality milk? Setting up more milk collection centers.Last year, the Agriculture Ministry kicked off an EGP 1 bn national project to establish new milk collection centers with upgraded specifications to cut down on milk loss and spoilage, ultimately providing healthy and safe dairy products to the market at reasonable price points. To date, the ministry has spent around EGP 400 mn to set up 34 new centers and upgrade 218 existing centers, with the remaining stages of the plan still underway, a ministry source told Enterprise. The project is focusing primarily on rural villages, particularly those that fall under the Hayah Karima (Decent Life) initiative.
But even with better infrastructure, producers are struggling with a leap in input costs:Since April, production costs for dairy producers have jumped by no less than 50%, broadly as a result of the rising cost of importing feed for dairy cows, which had knock-on effects, Katilo Cheese Chairman Abdel Moneim Katilo told Enterprise. Powdered milk prices have also jumped, Katilo said, meaning the end products sold to consumers have also gotten more expensive, regardless of whether they are made with real or powdered milk.
A fragmented industry has also made it more difficult and more costly: The dairy industry is broadly reliant on small factories or laboratories, which are unlikely to yield standard or uniform quality products, while larger factories are primarily focused on maintaining quality standards and protecting productivity levels. This lack of enforced quality standards is problematic, and could be resolved by mandating the National Food Safety Authority with overseeing all milk collection centers to ensure they are meeting specifications for milk preservation, head of the Chamber of Food Industries’ dairy division Ahmed Ghazi said.
The quality problem starts on the farm: Although Egypt has plenty of livestock, farmers’ lack of awareness or adherence to storage and packaging requirements leads to large amounts of milk production that is unusable for some dairy producers, Farmers’ Syndicate head Hussein Abu Saddam told Enterprise. This shortage of high-quality local milk has pushed many cheese producers to rely more on imported powdered milk, he said. Higher feed prices also led to lower livestock productivity, which Abu Saddam suggests the government could address by encouraging the cultivation of fodder crops as alternatives to imports. Farmers could provide alternatives to imported fodder, including alfalfa and yellow corn, provided that these crops are also subject to international quality standards to avoid harming the remainder of the dairy supply chain, Abu Saddam suggested.
In the meantime, prices are jumping — but the market appears to be absorbing it so far, Katilo said. However, there are signs that prices could begin leveling off, Katilo suggested, while Abu Saddam stressed that product prices will only begin to cool down if fodder is provided to farmers at lower price points to encourage higher production of milk that dairy producers can then rely on.
Your top industrial development stories for the week:
SCZone launches a digital platform for ‘industrial networking’: E-Tabadul went live this week, an effort to improve access to local production supplies for SCZone factories projects, in a bid to localize industry. (Cabinet statement)
Getting a better concentration of phosphate ore: The public works ministry has signed an agreement to set up a company tasked with increasing the concentration of phosphate ore via a new factory, in cooperation with Al Nasr Mining, Al Safy Group, and India-based Wilson. (Ministry statement)
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