{"id":555898,"date":"2021-10-03T04:14:18","date_gmt":"2021-10-03T04:14:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2021\/10\/03\/this-morning-we-should-be-inking-contracts-to-link-grids-with-saudi-this-week-nafeza-is-here\/"},"modified":"2021-10-03T04:14:18","modified_gmt":"2021-10-03T04:14:18","slug":"this-morning-we-should-be-inking-contracts-to-link-grids-with-saudi-this-week-nafeza-is-here","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2021\/10\/03\/this-morning-we-should-be-inking-contracts-to-link-grids-with-saudi-this-week-nafeza-is-here\/","title":{"rendered":"THIS MORNING: We should be inking contracts to link grids with Saudi this week + Nafeza is here"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, friends, and welcome to an abbreviated workweek. <\/strong>We have plenty of news for you this fine fall morning, so let\u2019s jump straight in:<\/p>\n

The House was back in session yesterday after its summer recess<\/strong>. A raft of<\/a>business relevant legislation<\/a> is on the agenda, from the Unified Budget Act, VAT amendments to a bill that would regulate the fintech space, lawmakers told us last week. Al Hayah Al Youm\u2019s Lobna Assal spoke to MP Amr Darwish yesterday, who gave her a rundown on what to expect from the legislative session (watch, runtime: 9:43<\/a>).<\/sup><\/p>\n

We\u2019re kicking off a shortened <\/strong>workweek<\/strong> today<\/strong>, with the nation getting Thursday 7 October off in observance of Armed Forces Day. We can also expect to have a Thursday (or possibly Sunday) off later in the month thanks to the Prophet Muhammad\u2019s Birthday, which is formally observed on Monday, 18 October.<\/p>\n

Nafeza is here:<\/strong> The Customs Authority\u2019s new one-stop Advanced Cargo Information (ACI) platform graduated from a pilot into first-phase implementation<\/a> on Friday, 1 October. Anyone who has not signed up for Nafeza can no longer clear imported goods out of customs at seaports.<\/p>\n

The rollout went ahead after delays <\/strong>and <\/strong>calls<\/a><\/strong> from the business community to postpone <\/strong>yet further <\/strong>as they get to grips with the new process. For more on the hows and whys of the blockchain-based documentation system, read our explainer here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

HAPPENING TODAY- A Hamas delegation headed by the group\u2019s leader, Ismail Haneyah, <\/strong>will be in <\/strong>Egypt later today, <\/strong>the Jerusalem Post<\/a> reports. The delegation, which will also include the movement\u2019s leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar, will reportedly sit down with Egyptian officials to continue negotiations on a prisoner swap agreement with Israel.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s day two of <\/strong>Techne Summit<\/a><\/strong>, with the three day investment and entrepreneurship event in Alexandria held under the auspices of the CIT ministry bringing together some 600 startups.<\/p>\n

Investment in Egyptian startups has more than doubled in 2021<\/strong>, rising to USD 390 mn year-to-date from USD 190 mn in 2020, <\/strong>CIT Minister Amr Talaat<\/a> said at the gathering yesterday.<\/p>\n

The Cairo International Fair continues today<\/strong> at the Cairo International Conference Center, running through 8 October.<\/p>\n

Egypt and Saudi Arabia are set to ink contracts to start linking their electricity <\/strong>grids<\/strong> on 5 October<\/strong>, with implementation of the project set to begin in 2022, Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker said Thursday at the inauguration of the test phase of the New Cairo electricity grid automatic control center, Al Mal<\/a> reports. Separately, Shaker told Al Shorouk<\/a> that the contracts would be signed \u201cwithin days.\u201d The Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company is expected to sign agreements governing cables, overhead lines, and transformer stations with their Saudi counterparts. The 3GW project is now set to become operational in 2023<\/a>, after reportedly being delayed due to Saudi Arabia\u2019s Neom project<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The final quarter of 2021 is here.<\/strong> Get these dates in your diary:<\/p>\n