15/01/1997
Al-Alam Alyom Newspaper 1997/JANUARY /15
An official report adopted by Atef Ebeid, Minister of the Public Business Sector, showed that the ownership base of only 28 public sector companies has been expanded, 24 of which through the stock exchange. Experts and investors have ruled out any chance of completing economic reform program by 2000. ( Available in Arabic )
Many public economic institutions have not so far been incorporated into economic reform or any privatization program. Officials and investors emphasize the impossibility of fulfilling the prime minister’s dream due to the vagueness of many aspects of the privatization program and the investors’ reluctance to buy public sector companies. Nader Riad, Chairman of the Bavaria Egypt, said the privatization program is still a mystery, as we do not know whether it aims at liquidating the public sector or selling and transferring its ownership to the private sector. He stressed that the rush to sell the public sector is a serious matter that should be taken into account, because it harms the march of industry and strips this vital sector of its entire capabilities.