Egyptian PM announces new cabinet line-up
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-12-29 17:09

Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazef has announced a new list of government ministers in an expected reshuffle after the parliamentary elections, a local newspaper reported on Thursday.

The 30-member list, published in a front-page story in The Egyptian Gazette, has few surprises as most of the key ministers of the previous cabinet retained their jobs.

A total of 11 members of the former government were dropped out of the new list while seven first-time cabinet members were introduced, and the number of ministries were reduced from 34 to 30, according to the report.

The so-called portfolios of sovereignty, including ministers of foreign affairs, interior, defense and justice, all remained unchanged as they are believed to be directly decided by President Hosni Mubarak.

The cabinet reshuffle also strengthened the position of the reform-minded economic group within the previous government.

Ministers of investment, fiance, trade and international cooperation, who have spearheaded the government's economic reform plan, secured their portfolios in the new cabinet.

"The new government will continue efforts to implement economic reform programs, reduce unemployment, upgrade services, attract more investments and create jobs for the nation's youth," the English daily quoted cabinet spokesman Magdi Radi as saying.

The list will be subsequently presented to President Mubarak for a final approval and the new government is set to be sworn in within days.

A cabinet reshuffle was planned as a routine procedure after the November-December parliamentary elections, in which incumbent Mubarak's ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) won a absolute majority in the 454-member People's Assembly.

Nazef had been busy with meeting members of the new cabinet during the last few days after the president asked him to form a new government on Tuesday.

Nazef, an IT expert and technocrat, took over the top government job in July 2004 charged with the mission of reactivating the country's largely stagnant economy.

The former minister of communications and IT has since launched massive economic reforms, including tariff cuts and investment- promoting measures.

Egypt's economy has shown some signs of recovery since last year.

Government figures showed that the economy grew 5.1 percent in the 2004-2005 fiscal year and foreign direct investment is also on the rise.