House speaker denies selling state-owned infrastructure enterprises

Speaker of the House of Representatives Ali Abdel Aal on Monday state-owned infrastructure enterprises will not be sold.

Addressing a parliamentary session, Abdel Aal added that there are rules -stipulated by the Constitution and the law- for the government to sell any state-owned infrastructure enterprise, including an approval of the House of Representatives.

Earlier this week, the International Cooperation Ministry said media reports on an article by Minister Sahar Nasr for the US Wall Street Journal entitled "Egypt is Charting a New Economic Course" were "inaccurate".

The ministry added, in a statement, that such reports misinterpreted the article claiming that the minister touched on the state-owned infrastructure enterprises, such as electricity, sewage and water, of which the state is a major shareholder.

The minister said mega projects, mainly in infrastructure, are being carried out as public-private partnerships, to ensure a crowding-in rather than crowding-out effect, the statement said.

Source: MENA