Armed Forces to donate LE1 bn to Sisi’s fundraising drive

The Armed Forces will donate LE1 billion to the president's fundraising drive for the Egyptian economy, Defense Minister Sedky Sobhy announced on Thursday.

The donation would be drawn from the National Service Projects Authority budget, which regulates the military’s economy, according to Sobhy.

Speaking at the military academy graduation ceremony on Tuesday, newly elected President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced that he would donate half of his salary and half of his assets to the state treasury to help save the country’s ailing economy.

He invited the rest of the population to do the same, asking, “Can we find support from Egyptians here as well as abroad?”

Responding to Sisi’s call, the Central Bank of Egypt announced it would open an account under the name “Long Live Egypt,” the slogan of Sisi’s presidential campaign, to receive donations for the fundraising drive.

Members of the government and prominent businessmen have swiftly responded to the president’s call.

Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb also dedicated half of his salary to the fund, Cabinet Spokesperson Hossam al-Qawish announced on Wednesday.

A similar fund was set up last year after former President Mohamed Morsi’s administration was ousted from power. Named the “Supporting Egypt Fund,” the account was also meant to help the economy recover from a prolonged crisis period. Mehleb was appointed to head up the council governing the fund, which received and then reallocated donations to different development projects.

Media mogul Mohamed al-Amin, a “Supporting Egypt Fund” board member, appeared on the privately owned CBC channel on Tuesday to announce that the board would soon reconvene to transfer last year’s funds into the new account.

According to Amin, the “Supporting Egypt Fund” raised LE1 billion.