By THE AFRICA BAZAAR Staff Writer
Egypt’s new prime minister said his government will attempt to restore security to the nation while building a strong, modern nation that reflects the will of the citizens during the January 2011 and June 2013 revolutions.
Ibrahim Mahlab, who has been serving as Egypt’s interim prime minister, took the oath of office Tuesday at the presidential palace in Cairo as the new prime minister for President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s government. The new government also swore in 34 ministers—introducing 13 new ministers, including four women, and retaining 21 previous ministers.
Mahlab, a veteran politician who also served during the Hosni Mubarak era, said his cabinet plans to start working quickly at tackling a number of challenges such as completing the “roadmap” by holding parliamentary elections, implementing the economic reforms el-Sisi promised during his election campaigns and translating the ambitious visions into strategies.
Among those newly sworn in as ministers is Sameh Shoaki, a former ambassador to Washington D.C., who replaced foreign minister Nabil Falimy. Naglaa El Ahway, a former university professor, was appointed Minister of International Cooperation while former banker Ashraf Salman was named Investment Minister.
El-Sisi, who became Egypt’s president earlier this month, had pledged to put security and restoring the nation’s struggling economy at the top of his agenda. He emphasized during his campaign the importance of fighting corruption and hinted at plans to implement serious austerity measures or reform the nation’s fuel and food subsidies to fix the nation’s ailing economy.