Gold from abroad
THE CABINET is close to taking a decision allowing Egyptians coming from abroad to bring up to 150 grams of gold duty-free. The proposal was made by the Gold Division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce to ease pressure on the local gold supply and reduce prices in order to stabilise the market.
Gold prices have surged by over 50 per cent year-on-year. On Monday, the per-gram purchase price of 24 karat, 21 karat and 18 karat gold amounted to LE2,994, LE2,620 and LE2,246 respectively.
In televised statements, Nagi Farag, the advisor to the minister of supply, said the current rise in gold prices is problematic for workers in the sector and non-workers as well.
Progress in research
EGYPT has made significant progress in international research publications, according to a report from the SCLmago Journal Rank released in 2022, Minister of Higher Education Ayman Ashour announced on Saturday.
Egypt’s global ranking is now 24th out of 233 countries, with 44,219 international research publications, 388 h-index laboratories and 42,493 citations. Compared to 2021, Egypt jumped two places and accounted for 1.13 per cent of the total global output of international publications. Egypt also reached first place in Africa among 58 countries for the third consecutive year, producing 27 per cent of Africa’s total output on international publications. Head of the Academy of Scientific Research and Technology Mahmoud Sakr highlighted Egypt’s progress in various scientific fields, including agricultural sciences, chemistry, engineering sciences, medicine, immunology and microbiology, physics, and mathematics.
Egypt India exercise
EGYPTIAN and Indian air forces conducted an exercise at an Egyptian airbase with the aim of strengthening military cooperation between the two countries, the Egyptian Armed Forces announced in a statement on Monday. The training involved several joint flights, including practice in aerial refuelling, allowing for the exchange of training experiences between both sides. “The exercise demonstrated the high level of professionalism the air force fighters achieved, qualifying them for various missions,” according to the statement.
Egyptian and Indian air forces previously conducted a joint exercise in Egypt in November 2021.
Smugglers convicted
Northern Cairo Criminal Court on Sunday sentenced an American and 11 Egyptians to life imprisonment and fined them LE10 million for smuggling 586 archaeological items to the US.
The general prosecution had referred the 12 to trial after arresting the unidentified American with the artefacts at JFK Airport in February. The artefacts were found wrapped in three bags, with the American suspect reportedly planning to transport them to New York.
Among the items found were pieces dating back 4,000 years. According to the prosecution, one of the suspects formed and led a gang to smuggle and sell Egyptian antiquities outside the country. It added that the American did not have an official document stating he could leave Egypt legally.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 11 May, 2023 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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