Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly chaired a meeting on Tuesday to discuss efforts to ensure the availability of essential and basic commodities and increase their strategic reserves. The meeting was attended by key officials, including Ali Moselhi, Minister of Supply and Internal Trade; El-Sayed El-Quseir, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation; Hossam Saeed, Chairperson of the National Cooling and Supply Company; Essam Omar, Assistant Sub Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt, and representatives from relevant bodies. Prime Minister Madbouly emphasized the importance of fulfilling President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi's directives to maintain sufficient stocks of essential commodities and build a strategic reserve. This reserve would allow the state to intervene during crises, stabilize prices, and prevent manipulation of essential goods like wheat, oil, sugar, corn, and others. Madbouly assured the meeting that the banking system is prepared to provide the necessary dollar funds to bolster the strategic reserves. He also underscored the significance of having appropriate storage facilities to accommodate these large stockpiles. Moselhi presented the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade's concrete plans for securing strategic reserves of essential commodities. He detailed that sugar contracts for 500,000 tons have already been signed, with deliveries scheduled sequentially. Regarding wheat, Moselhi highlighted that Egypt is currently in its wheat harvesting and supply season, experiencing exceptional supply rates exceeding those of the past three years. He added that a substantial reserve of this vital commodity already exists. Moselhi further elaborated on efforts to secure a strategic oil reserve. He mentioned meetings held with relevant officials and confirmed the presence of a significant existing stockpile. For corn and soybeans, the Minister referred to similar meetings with suppliers and traders. He explained the establishment of a monitoring network to track corn and soybean stock levels and facilitate continuous reserve growth. A significant portion of these commodities has also been imported for storage. El-Quseir provided an update on the total amount of feed released recently. He noted a near return of prices to pre-crisis levels and a noticeable decrease, particularly with the banking system's support in providing the necessary dollar funds. He elaborated that future requirements have been identified, and efforts are underway to build a strategic feed reserve to prevent future crises. El-Quseir revealed that feed worth $1.2bn has been supplied in the past four months. The meeting also addressed the availability of meat and poultry, ensuring sufficient quantities and appropriate pricing in various markets to meet citizen needs.
