Staff Report CAIRO, March 16, 2018 - Egyptians living abroad yesterday converged onto the Egyptian embassies and consulates in 124 countries to cast their ballots in the presidential elections. Competing over the top spot in the country are incumbent President Abdel Fattah ElSisi and the head of the centrist al-Ghad (Tomorrow) Party, Moussa Mustafa Moussa. For three days, Egyptian nationals living either permanently or for work outside Egypt are allowed to cast their ballots at 139 polling stations that have been set in 124 countries. Voters queued outside the Egyptian embassies and consulates, some of them raising the Egyptian flag high, waiting for their turn to enter the polling stations and elect a president for their country. "Voter participation in the election would give a very positive message about Egypt to the world," said Minister Immigration and Expatriates' Affairs, Nabila Makram said. "So far, the voting process is moving smoothly without any problems," her minister quoted her in a statement as saying. Most of the Egyptian expatriates live in the countries of the Arab Gulf, including 2.9 million in Saudi Arabia, 760,000 in the United Arab Emirates and 600,000 in Kuwait. Around 1.9 million Egyptians also live in Jordan. The Egyptian expats also constitute a major economic force, sending billions of dollars to Egypt every year in remittances. In 2017, they sent home a staggering $24 billion, an amount of money that was used in buoying up the economy and propping up foreign currency reserves at the central bank. Voting by Egyptian nationals abroad will run for three days. In Kuwait, Egyptian embassy officials said the turnout on the first day of voting had exceeded all expectations. "This turnout reflects the presence of high awareness among the voters about the importance of this election for Egypt," said Huweida Essam, Egypt's Consul-General in Kuwait. She said the fact that a large number of voters showed up at the Egyptian Embassy in Kuwait City reflected the desire of Egyptians in the Gulf state to backi the political process in their country. The Egyptian Embassy in Wellington, New Zealand, was the first in the world to welcome Egyptian voters yesterday. Mohamed el-Ansari, a dentist who was the first one to enter the embassy to cast his vote, called on all Egyptians to participate in the elections. "It takes voters only minutes to cast their ballots in the election," el-Ansari said. "But participation is a very important thing for our country." To ease the movement to and from polling stations, the Associations of Egyptians Abroad s offering free transport from central points in some cities to the Egyptian embassies and consulates. This service was very useful for the voters, who wanted to get to the polling stations especially in Qatar. Outside the polling station in Doha, voters lined up, waiting to enter and select a president for their country for the next four years. Spokesman of the National Election Authority (NEA), Justice Mahmoud el-Sherif, said yesterday's voting went on without any problems in all countries. The NEA, he said, is in continual contact with Egyptian embassies and consulates in other countries to ensure that nothing hindered the electoral process. He added that voters only need to produce an Egyptian identification document, regardless of whether it has expired or not. The Egyptian passport is also valid to vote in all 139 diplomatic missions and consulates around the world, el-Sherif added. The embassies will not ask about any official document or legal residency. 'The only thing that matters to us is to provide all facilities for Egyptians to vote, wherever they are', he said.
