It seems that the enthusiasm and determination that prompted Egyptians to take to the streets on 30 June has also led them to donate to the newly-established Support Egypt Fund that aims at supporting Egypt's tottering economy. The initiative was started by a group of Egyptian businessmen in a bid to shore up Egypt's economy after the ousting of president Mohamed Morsi following nationwide protests last week. Anyone can deposit money into the fund using bank account number 306/306, named after the 30 June Revolution, at all Egyptian banks. In case a contributor does not have a bank account in Egypt, the contribution can also be made directly to the National Bank of Egypt or Banque Misr under the same account number. As soon as the initiative was announced last Friday on the private satellite channel CBC, generous pledges were made by Egyptians from all walks of life supporting the fund. One source at the Crédit Agricole bank said that the Central Bank of Egypt had requested all banks to open a 306/306 account in the name of the Support Egypt Fund. The source expected that the fund would be a great success given the already wide response. “Before opening the account, I received many phone calls from customers asking about it,” the source told Al-Ahram Weekly. The fund aims to collect some LE10 billion, which would be placed at the disposal of Egypt's Interim President Adli Mansour. It is hoped that raising this amount will be done relatively quickly, given the tremendous response from Egyptians who have raced to aid their country. One of the first contributions to the fund was made by the Egyptian Armed Forces, which played a vital role in the 30 June Revolution and has donated LE300 million to the Egypt fund. Employees of the Ministry of Civil Aviation announced on Sunday that they would be contributing LE5 million. The Egyptian Trade Union Federation said it would donate LE2.5 million, while Egypt's judges, police officers and journalists will also contribute a portion of their monthly salaries. The Ministry of Interior has announced that it will be auctioning distinctive car license plates and donating the proceeds to the fund. The cinema industry has also declared that it will be supporting the fund, with many actors, directors and producers announcing their contributions to the fund. Head of the Egyptian Chamber of Tourism Companies Hossam Al-Shaer has stated that the country's tourism companies have already donated LE5 million and that they will be injecting another LE5 million in the coming days. Several businessmen have showed their support for the fund. Cable industry tycoon Al-Siwidi has donated LE25 million. Mohamed Attia, the owner of Sinalight, a leading lighting company, told the Weekly that he had contributed to the fund, though he refused to indicate the amount. He added that many other businessmen had also pledged donations. “Everyone is donating because they are optimistic about the coming period,” Attia said. “I expect that the fund will collect billions.” Meanwhile, businessman Mohamed Hawas, the CEO of the Sahara Group, stole the show when he declared in a telephone interview on TV that he would be donating a whopping $5 billion to the fund in addition to injecting some $150 million in investments in Egypt over the coming period. However, Hawas stated later in a televised interview that the $5 billion pledge was not a donation, but instead was a “long term loan” that aimed to solve the country's energy problems. Hawas said that he would use the sum to open letters of credit to import petrol and natural gas to Egypt. A contract would be drawn up with the government that would oblige it to repay the money after it had regained its financial strength, he said. “It's an easy term loan. I am not seeking profits. I just want to help solve the community's problems,” Hawas said. According to the newspaper Al-Shorouk, the annual turnover of Hawas's Sahara Group, which operates in six Arab countries, amounts to some $30 million, which raises doubts over Hawas's ability to fulfil his pledges. Hawas was an independent candidate in Egypt's 2005 presidential elections. Besides businessmen and various industries, many ordinary citizens have also expressed their desire to contribute to the fund. “I will donate my whole salary for next month to the fund,” Dina Saleh, a private-sector employee, told the Weekly. Many people have joined Saleh's gesture and expressed their willingness to give up a portion of their salaries to the fund. “We have an obligation to protect our country and to help it get through this critical period,” said Doaa Adel, 37, whose two children had donated their pocket money. In addition, many families have decided to deposit their zakat (charitable alms-giving by Muslims that is usually made during Ramadan) with the Support Egypt Fund. This came after the Dar Al-Iftaa, a branch of Al-Azhar, announced on Saturday that Egyptians could contribute zakat money to support the economy since the money would be used to invest in projects that would eventually benefit people. The Support Egypt Fund is the latest of several initiatives designed to aid the Egyptian economy following the 25 January Revolution. In March 2011, the government of Essam Sharaf created an account under the name “Contributions to Support the Egyptian economy” that would accept deposits and donations from citizens in order to support the country's economy in the aftermath of the 25 January Revolution. The number of this account was 2512011, the date of the revolution. However, the account collected a mere LE40 million. Another initiative was taken by prominent Salafi preacher Mohamed Hassan in February 2012, who called for the replacement of the $1.3 billion annual US military aid to Egypt by local donations. The call came after US politicians had threatened to cut annual US military aid to Egypt after 43 civil society workers had been taken to court on charges of violating the NGO law. Last November, former president Morsi called on Egyptians to support the Egyptian economy by donating to Central Bank of Egypt account number 333/333, named “Egypt's Renaissance”. However, this initiative raised little money.
