Cleaning Cairo ♻️

Welcome back to another edition of the Egypt Weekly Roundup.

A belated Merry Christmas to all who celebrated — we hope it was a holly, jolly week with your loved ones 🎄

While Christmas isn’t a formally recognized holiday in Egypt, many still embrace the festive spirit, especially with New Year around the corner and end-of-year downtime setting in.

This week’s edition is a lighter one, as many companies ease into vacation mode — and our first edition of 2026 is likely to follow a similar pace.

On that note, we hope you enjoy this rare light read, and we wish you a happy new year in advance.

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• New $2.5 billion IMF tranche 🔓

• Egypt rejects Israel's Somaliland recognition 🇸🇴

• Trash crackdown in Cairo 🗑️

IMF | LOAN | ECONOMIC REFORM
EGYPT UNLOCK $2.5 BILLION IMF TRANCHE, COULD ARRIVE IN JANUARY

Egypt reached a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the fifth and sixth reviews of its Extended Fund Facility and the first review of the Resilience and Sustainability Facility, with about 2.5 billion dollars expected assuming the IMF Executive Board approves the deal in an upcoming meeting in January.

Growth and external relief: The IMF says Egypt’s growth has picked up, supported by non-oil sectors and tourism, alongside an improved balance of payments, stronger non-resident inflows, and higher foreign reserves. These trends suggest pressure on external finances has eased compared to previous years.​

Fiscal discipline and tax agenda: The government has maintained a primary surplus and plans to widen it further over the next two fiscal years, helped by strong tax revenue growth. A new “growth-friendly” tax package is planned to raise the tax-to-GDP ratio while maintaining room for social protection programs such as Takaful and Karama.​

Tight policy, lingering risks: Monetary policy remains tight as inflation cools from previous peaks, and price pressures are still being watched closely. The Despite the positives, the IMF highlighted remaining vulnerabilities like state-linked energy finances. The multilateral lender urged faster structural and governance reforms to lock in a more private sector–led growth model.

SOMALILAND | ISRAEL | EAST AFRICA
EGYPT, AFRICAN, ARAB, ISLAMIC STATES REJECT ISRAEL’S RECOGNITION OF SOMALILAND

Egypt, along with a large bloc of Arab, African, and Islamic states, issued a sharp condemnation of Israel’s decision to recognize the breakaway “Somaliland” region — warning it sets a dangerous precedent for redrawing borders and threatens stability in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea.

Sovereignty and international law: In a joint statement, the foreign ministers — including Algeria, Comoros, Djibouti, The Gambia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Maldives, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Türkiye and Yemen, along with the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) — called the move an unprecedented challenge to Somalia’s sovereignty and to the basic rules underpinning the international order.​ The ministers stressed their “unequivocal rejection” of Israel’s recognition, describing it as a grave violation of international law and the UN Charter’s principles on state sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Backing Somalia’s unity: The statement reaffirmed full support for the Federal Republic of Somalia, rejecting any steps that weaken its unity, borders, or control over its entire territory. Somalia’s leadership has framed Israel’s move as a deliberate attack on its sovereignty that risks inflaming tensions across the Horn of Africa.​

Link to Palestine and wider tensions: The signatories also rejected any attempt to link Somaliland recognition with schemes to forcibly displace Palestinians, insisting such moves are categorically unacceptable. Regional bodies like the African Union have echoed concerns that Israel’s decision could set a wider precedent, deepening instability well beyond Somalia’s borders.​

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GARBAGE DISPOSAL | CAIRO
GOVERNMENT BEGINS TRASH CRACKDOWN ON CAIRO’S STREETS

Cairo’s governor Ibrahim Saber Khalil has ordered all shops in the city to place large garbage bins outside their premises within two weeks, tightening enforcement on businesses that dump waste directly onto the streets. Non-compliant shop owners face legal action and fines of EGP 5,000 under Egypt’s Public Shops Law.​

What the new rules require: The directive applies to all types of shops and mandates a bin of at least 240 liters placed in front of each storefront. District heads and sanitation officials have been assigned to monitor compliance and report regularly to the governor.​

Why the city is pushing back: Authorities say daily inspections revealed widespread dumping of shop waste in streets and informal spots, harming the city’s appearance and public health. Officials frame the move as part of a broader effort to make businesses share responsibility for urban cleanliness.​

Waste crisis by the numbers: Cairo produces around 10,000 tons of solid waste a day, with roughly 20 percent—about 2,000 tons—left on the streets, while nationwide at least 30 percent of waste goes uncollected. Officials estimate that as much as 40 percent of solid waste ends up on streets or illegal dumpsites, underscoring the scale of the problem this policy is trying to address.