The decision taken by the cabinet on Saturday to shorten the hours of the curfew that is in force in Egypt, with this now beginning from 11pm instead of 9pm and lasting until 6 in the morning, may help to ease the economic hardships that have affected many businesses lately. As a result of the curfew, imposed on 14 governorates across Egypt three weeks ago after the announcement of a month-long state of emergency in the country in a bid to restore security, some commercial activities have been crippled, with losses being significant in both the public and private sectors. “My goods are normally transferred during the night more than during the daytime, either from the factories to my shop or from my shop to the retailers. The curfew does not allow that system to work normally,” said Mohamed Al-Sherif, a wholesaler in the Dokki district of Cairo. “Trucks that transfer goods have not been allowed to pass checkpoints during curfew hours, and this has hindered business and left me with losses,” he said. While security officials agreed with the Federation of Chambers of Commerce to allow the transfer of goods during curfew hours last week, Al-Sherif said that long queues at checkpoints had forced trucks to wait for hours for much of the time. “Shortening the curfew hours has helped to ease the problem, but I will have to wait until the curfew is cancelled before I can say that my business is back to normal,” he said. Adel Amin, the owner of a garment shop in downtown Cairo, said that sales had dropped by more than 70 per cent since the curfew started. “Customers usually start shopping after sunset, especially in the summer because of the heat,” he said, adding that many shops had had to offer unusual discounts to attract as many customers as possible. The downtown Cairo district, known for its thousands of shops selling everything anyone might need, has suffered from low business activity because of its proximity to the landmark Tahrir Square, a centre for demonstrations since the 25 January Revolution that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak. Last week, the minister of supply and internal trade, Mohamed Abu Shadi, said that he would be extending the summer sales period for another month until mid-October as retailers had complained of a lack of demand during the month-long sales owing to the political instability in the country. Amin said that since Sunday, a day after the curfew hours were shortened, more customers had started to visit his shop. However, they still always seemed to be in a hurry to get back home before the curfew started. “I am happy about the objective of the curfew, which is to bring security back to the streets, but I hope it is cancelled soon in order to prevent more losses for businesses,” he said. Because they are used to working night shifts in Cairo, the city's taxi drivers have also been suffering from the curfew, which has led to shrinking revenues. One group of white-taxi drivers, who had traded in their old taxis and received new ones through a governmental project initiated in 2009, has asked the ministry of finance, responsible for the loans given to drivers and the collection of instalment payments through the banks, to postpone the instalments for four months, according to the daily Al-Boursa newspaper, because of losses suffered as a result of the curfew. The security situation has also led officials to cancel some long train schedules to the governorates, with losses estimated at some LE3 million daily. The government has also had to shorten the hours of Cairo's metro system, leading to a cut in revenues of some 60 per cent. According to Eman Mohamed, a professor of economics at Ain Shams University in Cairo, the economic price that Egypt is paying for enhanced security across the country will be compensated for when stability returns. “No business has been operating normally over the last couple of years because of the continuing demonstrations and the loose security conditions in many areas. Businesses were already suffering,” she said. Mohamed said that the current security measures were expected to make people feel safe once more, which would help businesses in the longer terms.
