Egypt's Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said key telecom services disrupted by the Ramsis Telephone Exchange fire have been largely restored, and ordered a technical review to probe the blaze and fast-track digital infrastructure upgrades. Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Prime Minister Madbouly praised emergency responders for swiftly containing the fire and minimising damage to the broader communications network. He said core internet and telecom services had been rerouted through alternative hubs, including the El Rawda Exchange, helping stabilise fixed-line, mobile, aviation, and food subsidy systems within hours. "The fire tested our systems, and we passed that test," Prime Minister Madbouly said. "The narrative that Egypt's telecom sector relies solely on the Ramsis Exchange is inaccurate. We have a layered, integrated network, and our ability to maintain services despite the fire proves its resilience." The incident triggered temporary service outages affecting mobile connections, banking applications, and stock market operations. The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) took "precautionary measures" and suspended trading briefly on Tuesday but resumed operations the following day. President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has directed the formation of a high-level committee to investigate the fire's cause and recommend measures to strengthen network resilience, he added. Prime Minister Madbouly said the crisis presents an opportunity to re-engineer and upgrade outdated components of the national telecom infrastructure, aligning with Egypt's broader digital transformation strategy. "We will not only recover from this incident—we will emerge with a stronger, smarter system," Prime Minister Madbouly says. The Ramsis Exchange is one of Egypt's central telecom nodes, handling a significant share of voice and data traffic across the capital. While its damage highlighted some system vulnerabilities, the quick rerouting of traffic reassured officials that ongoing investment in redundancy and network architecture is paying off. Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English
