NEWSLETTER - Canada Egypt Business Council

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CEBC Indepth Former Minister of Civil Aviation and Air Force Commander Ahmed Shafik has had a extensive career in aviation. Although the 71-year-old has long held public positions, Shafik became the center of attention when former President Hosni Mubarak appointed him prime minister on January 29, 2011. Shafik remained in this post for a little over a month before submitting his resignation on March 3. Shafik has been commended for his achievements as minister of civil aviation even by members of the opposition. During his term at the ministry, Shafik introduced major developments in Egyptair and Cairo International Airport, making Egyptair the leading regional carrier and a member of Star Alliance in 2008. The airline’s financials witnessed a turnaround after years of recurring losses. Under his tenure, Cairo International Airport was renovated with a number of new terminals including Terminal 3 in 2008, which brought the airport’s annual capacity up to 22 million passengers. Sharm El-Sheikh and Luxor airports were also renovated, with Sharm Airport’s capacity increased to eight million passengers. Shafik announced his presidential candidacy in November 2011. His announcement came after several visits from supporters who flocked to his house calling for him to run in the upcoming presidential election. His bid, although hailed by many, also stirred opposition from those who refuse to accept any person from the military or the former regime in the race. In addition to his master’s and PhD, Shafik has received several fellowships from military colleges in Egypt and Paris. He holds a master’s degree in military sciences, a PhD in the national strategy of outer space and a diploma in Islamic studies. Shafik has been awarded various military decorations, including first-class honors of the Republic Military, the Military Bravery, Military Training, Military Duty, Distinguished Service and April 25 Decorations. He was also awarded the Longevity, Army Day, Sixth of October, Anniversary of the Revolution, and Kuwait Liberation medals On the economy level, Shafik said that he believes Egypt is a great land of opportunities waiting to be harvested and that several areas in Egypt where resources are plentiful and investing them is either deliberately suspended, as in the case of Lake Nasser, or neglected as in the case of the free zone in Port Said. With regards to education, Shafik sees that we have been largely messing around lately without any real change or development. “For several years now, every time we say we will develop our education system, we simply add or remove a year from school stages. We remove one year from primary stage and add it to preparatory, and then put it back into primary, and this year has been going back and forth between different stages of the education system. And we think we are developing our education”. CEBC 38
CEBC Indepth Shafik sees the proof is evident in the university graduates in Egypt who can’t even read or write, comparing this to the university education quality Egypt had in the 1940s or 1950s. “We have been flocking to universities, not to get real education, but to get certificates.” “This is because we don’t have the courage to implement change from the roots. If I am treating a tree, I shouldn’t be focusing on the trunk when the roots are diseased. You should tackle the issues from the very roots and have the boldness to change, especially when you have role models to follow from other countries with strong education. See what other people are doing, go to those who have stronger education systems, take what suits you from them, bring those experiences and implement them here.” Shafik believes in increasing the funding and prioritizing the expenditure sections need to be done as well. “The increase of funds will come when we succeed in attracting investments. I am not saying that we have to wait until the industry and the overall economy gets back on track, but as soon as we restore credibility, we will certainly be able to secure the funding for such projects” About the issue of dealing with the demands of workers, Shafik sees that If we can’t come up with the right terms for relations between workers and employers, we can always reach out to other countries that have experience in this field, review different models and choose what is best for the Egyptian culture and nature. Workers’ rights are primarily human rights, justice and obtaining your rights without struggling to get them. “In previous times, maybe we were not serious enough in handling such issues, but the government must undertake its role as a regulator of all relations and of all activities.” Mohamed Morsi’s Renaissance Project electoral program sets out his economic vision’s goals to be: building a base for sustainable development according to Islamic Sharia, enhancing comprehensive development in all service and productive sectors, achieving, social justice and fighting poverty. Morsi’s economic vision aims at increasing the gross domestic product by multiplying national and foreign investment, modernizing the Egyptian economy, in order for it to be able to meet the needs of the people and provide them with convenient standards of living. Morsi’s program clearly states that a rising GDP does not necessarily eradicate poverty, unemployment and corruption. In his program he intends to raise the GDP, while avoiding the problems of the past that did not allow the growth to trickle down to all levels of society. To do so, he would shift the economy from being one that is based on complete depletion of resources, to one that is based on know-how and added value. He added two more strategies to achieve this goal, namely ‘wise administration’ of the Egyptian economy, which increases competitiveness and attracts investors, the integration of economic, social and human development for developing the country and achieving its renaissance and decreasing the uninhabited areas in Egypt. CEBC 39
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