CAIRO - Local experts say that, whether it was in industry or in agriculture, the former regime implemented plans where millions of pounds were spent in vain, owing to absence of follow up, poor administration and laxity in promoting available resources. A case in point, as Fekri Youssef, Chairman of the Mineral Wealth Authority has highlighted, is the way such a vital sector as mineral wealth was and still is being run. Mineral resources, in which Egypt abounds, albeit not well exploited, come under the supervision of l2 governmental bodies, a matter that Youssef finds impractical, representing a waste of effort and money. He suggests that the authority he presides over should be entitled to full supervision of the sector. The chairman added that the current law governing mining activities in this country has to be modified in order to enhance investments. He stated that a series of sessions are being held by senior officials to draw up a new bill with a view to increasing state revenues. ”The current law was issued in l956 and is in need of change since it does not cope with the nature of required investments of the post-revolution era.” Youssef cited the example of phosphate mines which under the present law are leased for LE 5 (less than one US dollar) per square kilometre, which results in the national income of this sector being no higher than one per cent of its actual value. He pointed out that, for this reason, the authority has decided to suspend licenses for phosphate mines to bring to a halt what he termed the ‘phosphate mafia'. According to Youssef, the newly suggested rate is LE l0,000 per square kilometre. “In this case some LE l00 million would be channelled to the State Treasury, should only l0,000 kilometres be leased”, the senior official told Al-Messa Arabic evening newspaper. He estimated that about 75 per cent of mines and quarries' actual potential in general is squandered because of random exploitation and poor supervision. He added that the value of Egypt's mineral wealth is assessed at billions of dollars yet what is actually utilised is only five per cent of this wealth. Concerning plans to develop performance in this sector Youssef pointed out that there is a project which is being considered at the moment involving the creation of l,000 mines and quarries to create thousands of jobs for geologists, mining engineers and technicians. The ambitious plan as envisaged would include mining and quarrying industries, as well. “The Minister of Petroleum Abdallah Ghorab has entrusted me with this file in a bid to promote the authority's revenues.”
