Witch trials + tinfoil hats

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THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Last week was heavy on investment news + keep an eye out for more privatization updates next week

Good morning, friends, and happy FRIDAY. It’s the last Friday before June — which means we’re inching ever closer to the real summer season. Use these last few weeks to tie up your loose ends in Cairo and open up your summer houses before the exodus to Sahel begins right around Eid Al Adha at the end of June.

Enterprise Weekend comes out each Friday at 9:00am CLT. We’ll be back on Sunday at 6am with EnterpriseAM. Until then: Enjoy the weekend.

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Career switchers are very welcome.

Apply directly to jobs@enterprisemea.com and mention “advisory development program” in your subject line.

LAST WEEK IN 3 MINS- It was quiet on the macro and privatization fronts for a change, but heavy on investment and green economy news.

THE BIG STORY- The fun tax is back: A raft of tax, duty and development fee hikes on things like dutyfree and entry to theaters, parks, and clubs were given the OK by the House Planning and Budgeting Committee after the government amended some of the hikes. The tax hikes — which were rejected by the House General Assembly and have been in limbo since December 2021 — now excludes provisions that would have impacted lower-income citizens, including a 2% development fee on finished durable goods and a 5% fee on local and imported soft drinks.

AND A LONE PRIVATIZATION UPDATE- Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) is among several companies interested in acquiring a stake in military-owned fuel retailer Wataniya. Adnoc is up against Saudi industrial oils giant Petromin and Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) and a separate unnamed Saudi company for at least 20-25% of Wataniya and bottled water company Safi.

INVESTMENT WATCH-

#1- A Chinese consortium offered to establish a USD 300 mn ironworks in the Suez Canal Economic Zone. The two companies — state-owned Sinoma and private metals manufacturer Xinfeng — discussed the project with SCZone CEO Walid Gamal El Din.

#2- AstraZeneca plans to invest over USD 100 mn in Egypt over “the coming years.” The pharma giant expects to use its investment to increase production capacity at its Sixth Of October factory by 50% and further localize its supply chains.

#3- Private equity firm Ezdehar Management is launching a EGP 1 bn local-currency fund targeting struggling medium-sized businesses in 3Q 2023. The new fund has already set its sights on five to seven firms where it will target 20-25% stakes. F&B, healthcare, ins., education, and manufacturing are among its priority sectors.

#4- Egypt-Oman Investment fund could soon spring into action: The joint fund being set up by the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) and the Oman Investment Authority (OIA) plans to start making investments in 4Q 2023. The two wealth funds will target companies and projects in the pharma, food, and renewables sectors.

#5- Fresh funds for Dawi: Primary care company Dawi Clinics is getting a EGP 250 mn investment led by Al Ahly Capital Holding (the National Bank of Egypt’s local investment arm) and with participation from existing investor the Egyptian American Enterprise Fund (EAEF). The fresh capital will finance the expansion of Dawi’s operations across the country.

WE’RE ANGLING FOR MORE-

#1- Foreign investors can now acquire year-long non-touristic residencies when proposing investment plans to the General Authority for Freezones and Investment (GAFI), according to a decision by the Interior Ministry. The residency can then be renewed for six-month or year-long periods depending on how long it takes to establish the business.

#2- Ministers have approved relaxing rules on freezones under government efforts to attract more private-sector investment. Amendments to the executive regulations of the 2017 Investment Act will allow Cabinet to exempt companies from having to comply with most of the rules currently in place for setting up freezones, including having a local component in manufacturing and export quotas.

GREEN ECONOMY + WATER SECURITY-

ON THE GREEN ECONOMY FRONT- The government is now targeting increasing its renewable energy generation capacity to cover 60% of the country’s electricity needs by 2040, following a target to hit 40% by 2030. Meanwhile, Energy China should sign a framework agreement within two months to build a green hydrogen plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone). The facility is expected to produce some 1.2 mn tons of green ammonia and 210k tons of green hydrogen annually upon completion.

WATER SECURITY- The African Development Bank mobilized USD 2.2 bn to improve Egypt’s water security under the government’s Nexus for Water, Food and Energy (NWFE) program, up from the initially targeted USD 1.4 bn.

WHAT’S HAPPENING NEXT WEEK-

Expect some more movement onthe privatization front: National Investment Bank subsidiary NI Capital recently said it has been preparing to sell stakes in seven state-owned companies as part of the government’s privatization program, two of which are expected to be complete before the fiscal year wraps at the end of June. This timeline means we have five weeks remaining for the sales to materialize. Those in the pipeline include companies in the oil, petrochemicals, and transport sector, NI Capital CEO Mohamed Metwally said at the time.

The potential contenders: We already know some of the oil and petrochemical players that the state has flagged for privatization: ‎The Egyptian Ethylene and Derivatives Company (Ethydco), Egyptian Linear Alkyl Benzene (Elab), Helwan Fertilizers Company, Chemical Industries Development Company, the Egyptian Polypropylene and Polypropylene Company, and the Egyptian Drilling Company were all named by the government in February when it announced its rebooted privatization plans.

We could also see more news from the National Dialogue, which meets for sessions three times a week to discuss more than 100 political, economic, and social issues. Some 800 individuals have been invited to participate.

The IEF-IGU Ministerial Gas Forum will kick off at the Nile Ritz Carlton on Monday. The Oil Ministry-hosted event will bring together officials and industry insiders to discuss energy security, natural gas investment and affordable energy access.

The Egyptian-Rwandan Investment and Trade Day will also take place on Monday at the Helnan Landmark Hotel in Cairo. Importers, exporters, and investors will discuss boosting investment and trade between the two countries

Earnings season wraps: The deadline for listed companies to report and publish their 1Q results is Tuesday, 30 May.

The House of Representatives will reconvene on Sunday.

El Re7la’s Fintech Industry Retreat starts Thursday, 1 June in Hurghada: The event will bring together leading entrepreneurs, investors, and regulators from the local fintech scene for three days of networking, discussions, and industry masterclasses.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

YOUR MOST CLICKED LINKS-

Ayman Ismail’s LinkedIn profile got some love after his appointment as the chairman of Swvl’s audit committee.
Some of you wanted a refresher on the raft of tax hikes, duties and development fees that came back from the House of Representatives limbo this week. (Enterprise)
Lynx MD and co-founder Mohamed Hanafi’s morning routine also got a lot of attention. (Enterprise)
A handful of you wanted to check out Maadi’s Hai Tian Dumplings after our recommendation in EnterprisePM. (Google Maps)
Dawi Clinics’ investment round led by Al Ahly Capital and the Egyptian-American Enterprise Fund also got some clicks. (Statement, pdf)

AROUND THE WORLD IN SEVEN DAYS-

The US continued to dominate headlines with its debt ceiling impasse: Rating agency Fitch warned last week that the US could lose its AAA credit rating due to the ongoing standoff over the debt ceiling. Republicans and Democrats both said that talks have been productive but several issues remain unresolved.

Greek elections also got attention: The center-right party of Greece’s incumbent prime minister got a larger-than-expected share of the vote during national elections, though still fell short of a parliamentary majority. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ New Democracy party received more than 40% of the vote, coming within five seats of a majority. Mitsotakis intimated that he wouldn’t look to form a coalition with another party and instead will seek a majority in a fresh vote, likely to take place in late June.

Clashes in Sudan continued, despite ceasefire: Clashes between Sudan’s warring factions could be heard in Khartoum and elsewhere in the country late last week, in spite of a week-long ceasefire aimed at facilitating aid delivery and establishing a lasting truce. The ceasefire has provided some respite from the ongoing conflict, but there are limited signs that aid efforts have ramped up significantly. More than 1.3 mn people have now been displaced by the conflict.

☀️ THE WEATHER THIS WEEKEND- It’s a very mixed outlook for this weekend’s weather,with today being mostly cloudy despite the mercury rising to 35°C, and hovering around 23°C at night, our favorite weather app tells us. Saturday will see the mercury rise to a sweltering 38°C during the day, before falling to 22°C at night.

Our ultimate list of Arab dessert influencers worth following for out-of-the-box recipes

Looking for out-of-the-box dessert recipes? Here are our favorite Arab dessert bloggers:Arab culinary influencers have taken Instagram by storm over the past few years, amassing hundreds of thousands of followers with their creative desserts and (mostly) easy-to-follow recipes. From unbelievably fluffy cakes that melt in your mouth to crumbly pastries, these dessert legends have mastered the art of turning simple ingredients in your pantry into masterpieces. We present you this list in the hopes that it will inspire you to bake, and not just salivate.

FROM EGYPT-

Cleobuttera, run by Tasbih Sallam, is a favorite at Enterprise. One of the most well-known dessert bloggers in Egypt, with over 150k followers on Instagram, her recipes have gone viral more than once, even internationally. Discovering baking at a young age, Tasbih developed her skills, experimented with different recipes, and her baking went from a hobby to a career. While she is currently still on hiatus, she has left behind a wealth of recipes for us to try — and favorites we keep coming back to.

OUR FAVORITE RECIPE- While her renowned (and frequently copied) Mesh Om Aliis a classic, we were impressed with her pistachiomafroukehtruffles when we tried them out. Packed with flavor, and packaged in a beautiful and colorful bite-sized ball of goodness, this truffle makes pistachio the star of the dish. The truffles are made with ground pistachios mixed with semolina and rosewater, then filled with delicious cream and rolled around in even more pistachio, before getting topped with a dried rose petal, and delicious sugar syrup.

LIBYAN DESSERTS-

What started out as Libyan architect Lubna Ben Halim’s hobby account has become home to hundreds of mouthwatering baking recipes. Early followers of her account begged her to post the recipes to her appetizing and beautifully decorated creations. She obliged, and lulukitchenly was born. With a particular knack for food photography and styling, Ben Halim has a talent for making desserts look extremely appetizing. Her feed is filled with authentic Libyan desserts from magrood — a date-filled semolina cookie — to lemon curd pavlova and fig and ginger ice cream.

OUR FAVORITE RECIPE- We humbly present the strawberries love swiss roll for nomination. The pillowy vanilla sponge cake is rolled over a thick cloud-soft layer of pink strawberry cream, and topped with chopped strawberries, mixed berries, and fresh mint. You can find the recipe for this swiss roll (along with all of Lubna’s other desserts) on her website.

FLAVORS FROM THE GCC-

Emirati chef Bader Najeeb became the host of his own cooking segments on national television at the age of 17, a culmination of being immersed in the world of baking for four years. In 2018, one year after graduating from university, the accountant-turned-baker went on to study at the Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland, where he specialized in chocolate and sugar arts.

OUR FAVORITE RECIPE- Making chocolate sounds daunting, but these orange cinnamonpralines look good enough to make us want to try. The pralines are made up of a delicate dark chocolate shell filled with a smooth chocolate crème tempered in a beautifully citrusy orange purée.

If you live in the UAE and you’re too lazy to do the work, we’ve got good news: Najeeb also sells his creations on his website (though you might want to check his shipping policies before you make an order).

FOR OUR HEALTH-CONSCIOUS FRIENDS-

Hematology lab technician by day and healthy(ish) dessert influencer by… other times of day, Kuwaiti chef Abdulaziz Alreshoud has taken Instagram by storm with delicious, plant-forward treats. Alreshoud routinely encourages people to experiment with healthier alternatives for plant-based ingredients already in use — like switching out white sugar for the less processed and more nutritious date sugar — but has the sense to recognize that sometimes butter is just necessary. If you want to indulge in dessert but want to eliminate some of the less healthy ingredients, this is the account for you.

OUR FAVORITE RECIPE- Alreshoud’s Apple Baklava substitutes some of the traditionalrecipe’s sugar content with apples. The crispy layers of phyllo coupled with the tender caramelized apple had us rethinking our puritanical dessert principles, we’re brave enough to admit.

AND FOR THE PASTRY OBSESSED-

Pastry pro Karim Bourgi — born in Senegal to Lebanese parents, professionally trained in Paris, based in the UAE, and jetsetting masterchef instructor — has left no stone unturned in the pastry world. His dedication to creating desserts almost too beautiful to eat is reflected in his laundry list of awards (most recently best pastry chef in the MENA region) and extensive portfolio, consisting of a festival of chantilly, crémeux, and whipped ganache.

OUR FAVORITE RECIPE- If you want to dip your toes in the delicious world of professional confectionery, we suggest you start with this recipe for madeleines. It might seem like a simple treat, but make no mistake: Making a good genoise sponge takes skills.

Unfortunately, most recipes for Bourgi’s masterpieces are hidden behind a USD 65 paywall, though you can gain access to the 16-recipe Pastry Collection book instantly because it’s an ebook. Bourgi also offers baking courses for recipes like fuji roll and travel cakes, ranging between EUR 49-80.

Fast and the Furious never ends + This Mexican-Egyptian fusion restaurant has 120+ choices on its menu

? AT THE MOVIES-

If you take everything you love (or love to hate) about the Fast and Furious franchise and double it, you’ll end up with Fast X (watch trailer, runtime: 4:31). It is, quite literally, a culmination of every installment before it, featuring cameos from seemingly every major and minor character ever credited in its predecessors. The movie is pure and distilled Fast and Furious fun, from its premise (you can save the world by driving really fast) to its dialogue (almost exclusively snappy one-liners). The plot revolves around the movie’s antagonist, Dante (played by Jason Mamoa), seeking revenge on Vin Diesel’s Dominic Torreto for events that took place five movies ago, though the filmmakers’ attempt to make Dante come across as an unhinged psychopath backfires, instead making him the most amusing character in a roster of stale personalities.

Passing the torch: The film also seems to follow Marvel’s current ethos in preparing to pass the mantle onto a younger generation. The opening scene sees a car doing donuts around trees in a parking lot — a pretty tame feat in the context of the Fast and Furious universe — until you realize that the person behind the wheel is Dom’s eight-year-old on-screen son, Brian, more commonly known as Little B. While the antagonist is vilified for committing murder, Little B is ironically high-fived for killing a group of henchmen, proving that you are never too young to commit vehicular manslaughter for a good cause.

WHERE TO WATCH- Race to find seats for Fast X atVOX Cinemas in Almaza and Mall of Egypt, as well asCairo Festival City. Don’t forget to stick around at the end for the post-credit scene.

Love Again made us feel a lot of things, but love isn’t one of them. There is something to be said for rom-coms: Their predictability can be comforting, the cheesiness can be charming, and you might find yourself shedding a tear at the inevitable reconciliation scene. Unfortunately, Love Again is not that kind of movie. Its opening scene sees Priyanka Chopra’s Mira watching her perfect partner John (Arinzé Kene) being killed by a drunk driver. What could’ve been a touching narrative about finding love while grappling with grief two years on (as the movie rushes into a timeskip) instead becomes a slightly creepy story about a man who used a grieving woman’s texts — to her late boyfriend’s work phone, which now belongs to Rob, played by scotsman Sam Heughan — to track her down and make her fall in love with him.

Perhaps this movie’s saving grace is Céline Dion, who makes a cameo in the film and echoes our exact sentiments by saying that Rob has “the presence of a pair of used underwear.” The queen of power ballads delivers the charmingly cheesy, over-the-top acting we were hoping to get, cementing our feelings that all the movie did was get in the way of what could’ve been a perfectly good Céline Dion visual album.

WHERE TO WATCH- If this is how you want to spend an hour and 44 minutes of your time, you can find tickets at VOX Cinemas in City Center Almaza and Mall of Egypt, Cairo Festival City Cinema, and City Stars Cinema.

? FROM THE BOOKSTORE-

A tale of mass hysteria for the ages: Awardwinning writer Rivka Galchen transports us back in time to 1600s Germany, weaving a story about a community high on fear and aggression who embark on a witch hunt. Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch recounts a fictionalized narration of the real-life witch trial of Katharina Kepler, mother to renowned scientist Johannes Kepler, based on historical documents and infused with bits of sardonic humor. When the spunky and unapologetic 71-year-old village herbalist is accused of witchcraft by a disgruntled neighbor, her son Johannes reluctantly comes to her aid while worrying about how his professional reputation could be affected.

What happens: Unbothered by the rumors that threaten her life, Katharina’s unrelenting humor and sharp tongue color her interactions with the townsfolk, which ultimately determines her fate. Quick to pin their misfortunes on others, the townspeople point fingers at her for everything from minor inconveniences to the sudden deaths of family members. Almost defiantly, her famous son barely makes an appearance in the story, much the same way she serves as a footnote in retellings of his life. Galchen seems to be making Katharina’s subjectively more interesting life a focal point of the tale, rather than giving Johannes a more prominent role.

WHERE TO FIND IT-Diwan’s copies of this novel are currently sold out, but you can find the Kindle version of it onAmazon for USD 9.99 or ahard copy for USD 12.4 or USD 16.91.

? HOT AND FRESH OUT OF THE KITCHEN-

An international fusion feast in Helipolis:Pablo & Abdo is both a dream come true and a nightmare for indecisive eaters. With a menu boasting 80+ food items and 40+ beverages, it’s nearly impossible to crave something and not find it. However, 120+ choices is… a lot to browse. The good news is you can slash 50% of the choices by asking yourself a simple question: Am I craving Mexican or Egyptian food? Not only are there classic options like tacos and hawawshi, fun fusion options are on offer as well, though not all of them are on theme.

A group affair: To experience as much of the menu as possible, we decided to go as a big group and order as much as we could stomach and dig in family-style. The buffalo chicken burger was a big hit — so much so that the last bite caused a ruckus only solved with a game of rock, paper, scissors. The shrimp dynamite was a close second, and might shoot to the top of your list if you prefer shellfish to poultry. While the hawawshi was the most divisive dish on the table, with some finding it a bit over seasoned, there was still nary a crumb left. For the health-conscious, we recommend the juicy and flavorful spiced grilled chicken.

The diner-style joint has indoors and outdoors seating, but no restrooms — which means you’ll need to cross the street to Coco Café if you need to use one. A resident pup also hangs around the outdoors area, so if you’re afraid of dogs, you might want to opt for the indoor seating option, though keep in mind there’s only a handful of booths available.

? Per person: EGP 200-300

? Outdoor seating: Yes

? Alcohol: No

? Accessibility friendly: Yes

Pseudoscience or archeological truths? This new Netflix docuseries tries to find out

The tin foil hat brigade comes to Netflix: Heteroclite pseudo-archaeologist and journalist Graham Hancock sets out to explore evidence of ancient civilizations existing before the Ice Age in his new eight-part docuseries, Ancient Apocalypse, in a bid to prove his theory that this is the world’s second attempt at human development. Hancock has built his entire career on trying to prove alternative theories on ancient civilizations, ancient monuments, and unexplained archaeological mysteries since publishing his book Fingerprints of the Gods in 1995. Renowned scholars everywhere scoff at his work, diplomatically calling him an “audacious autodidact.”

Take it with a grain of salt: Hancock travels around the world with his mission in mind, covering some indubitably interesting archeological discoveries, but leaves no room for any interpretation but his own. One archaeologist featured in the docuseries even said parts of her statements weretaken out of context to support his argument. Nevertheless, the fascinating world of international archaeology is revealed to us, and any history buff can appreciate the information being presented, even if the presenter is trying to skew it in a specific direction.

Where to watch: Hancock’s show is available to stream onNetflix, leaving you to decide whether he is a lone reed, standing tall and waving boldly in the corrupt sands of big academia, or just a lucky guy who bagged a show because his son just happens to be the senior manager of unscripted originals at Netflix.

Malcolm Gladwell’s podcast is a deep dive into the “overlooked and misunderstood”

Malcom Gladwell, bestselling author of Outliers and journalist at the New Yorker for 27 years, sets things straight in Revisionist History. Gladwell reexamines events, people, and ideas that he argues are “overlooked or misunderstood” — through a playful and witty combination of anecdote, argument, and research.

How ethical are (voluntary) medical experiments? In the 10th episode of the seventh season of Revisionist History, The Rise of the Guinea Pigs, Gladwell invites guests to discuss the ethics of medical experiments even when the subjects willingly volunteer to be tested. They follow the Minnesota Starvation Experiment, an experiment run by Ansel Keys during WWII to test the effects of thiamine deficiency, and explore to what extent an “informed decision” to participate is actually informed. It begs the question: Is it still an autonomous decision if you’re under societal pressure to better humanity?

WHERE TO LISTEN- You can find Revisionist History onSpotify,Google or Apple Podcasts,YouTube, and onPushkin.

THE ENTERPRISE ENTERTAINMENT CALENDAR

MAY

17 May-10 June (Wednesday-Saturday): Cairo Cinema Days at Zawya Cinema, Downtown Cairo.

24 May (Wednesday): Last day of Omar Abdel Zaher’s Roots exhibition at the Safarkhan Art Gallery.

24-25 (Wednesday-Thursday): Disco Misr at El Sawy Culture wheel.

24-27 May (Wednesday-Saturday): Pyramids Sound and Light Show.

25-27 May (Thursday-Saturday): TriFactory’s Somabay Endurance Festival.

26-29 May (Friday-Monday): Kenoma Theatre Company’s Ebny at Rawabet Art Space.

27 May (Saturday): Oud performance by Joseph Tawadros at Ewart Hall, AUC Tahrir.

27 May-27 June (Saturday-Tuesday): Annual Flower Exhibition from 10am at the Agricultural Museum.

JUNE

2-3 June (Friday-Saturday): Absurd & Beyond by ACT at Rawabet Art Space.

9 June (Friday): TriFactory Madinaty Half Marathon.

10 June (Saturday): Thanaweya Amma examinations begin.

15 June (Thursday): Last day of the Traces of Egypt Exhibition at the Grand Egyptian Museum.

16 June (Friday): Hiba Tawaj concert with cine orchestra at 8:30pmat Cairo Opera house.

28 June-2 July (Wednesday-Sunday): Eid El Adha (TBC).

30 June (Friday): June 30 Revolution Day.

JULY

18 July (Tuesday): Islamic New Year.

20 July (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Islamic New Year (TBC).

23 July (Sunday): Revolution Day.

27 July (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Revolution Day.

SEPTEMBER

26 September (Tuesday): Prophet Muhammad’s birthday (TBC).

28 September (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Prophet Muhammad’s birthday (TBC).

OCTOBER

6 October (Friday): Armed Forces Day.

13 October- 20 October (Friday-Friday): The sixth edition of El Gouna Film Festival (GFF).

EVENTS WITH NO SET DATE

2023: The inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum.

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