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Egypt army to tackle bread crisis/
About this event: African And Arab Regional Conference On Electronic Transaction Security, Digital Signature And PKI
Related to country: Egypt

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Egypt army to tackle bread crisis, Egypt's president has ordered the army to increase the production and distribution of bread, in an attempt to cope with serious shortages.
Rising prices and alleged corruption have sparked recent clashes at bakeries in poorer neighbourhoods, leading to several deaths.

Hosni Mubarak said eradicating bread queues was "imperative".

The army and interior ministry control numerous bakeries normally used to supply bread for troops and police.

Mr Mubarak issued his order to the army at a meeting of cabinet ministers on Sunday that was called to address the growing crisis, his spokesman said.

"Bread should be provided to the citizens and the lines should disappear," Suleiman Awwad quoted Mr Mubarak as saying.

The price of wheat has more than tripled on international markets since last summer.

Mr Mubarak has ordered the government to use some foreign reserves to buy additional wheat from the international market, the spokesman said.

Many of Egypt's 70m population, about half of whom live below the poverty line, survive on subsidised bread.


Unsubsidised bread is 10-12 times more expensive than the subsidised five-piaster loafs (less that $0.01).

Egyptians hit by rising food prices
As the BBC looks at the impact of rising food prices around the world, Heba Saleh reports from Cairo where soaring costs hit the country's poor - and the government that subsidises their bread.

Many families are having to cut back on meat
Battle for bread
A crowd of people jostle each other as they wait for subsidised bread outside a small bakery on a narrow unpaved back street in Imbaba, a poor suburb of Cairo.

A worker comes to the counter with a tray of hot bread just out from the oven and starts handing out stacks of loaves of round, flat bread to the people at the front of the queue.

It is nine o'clock in the morning, and the queue is full of housewives and government employees who have signed in at their offices, then come to line up for cheap bread to take home to their families later in the day.

Everyone here complains they are being squeezed by the latest wave of price rises.

"Speak about the famine that's taking place now," says Karima Mohamed, a mother of five.


I buy as many loaves as they allow me, 40 to 60 loaves.
Woman shopper
"A bottle of oil has now reached 10 (Egyptian) pounds (90p; $1.80). The government should not make things expensive for the Egyptian people, because we are the poorest of the world. Salaries here have not increased, but prices have gone up threefold and fourfold."
Family budgets, already under pressure in this mainly poor country, are being further strained by the international increases in the prices of staples such as wheat, rice, cooking oil and dairy products.

Some poor families say they have had to reduce their food intake to two meals a day.



They are eating meat even more infrequently than usual - or not at all.



Public purse takes hit


But one commodity which has not gone up is the subsidised baladi bread for which millions of Egyptian queue up patiently every day.




At less than one US cent a loaf, it is a key element of the national diet.

"This bread is very important for me," says Wafaa, a mother of five who works for the tax authority.

"I buy as many loaves as they allow me, 40 to 60 loaves. But I only take it for our daily food, and when tomorrow comes God will take care of it."

Baladi bread of a slightly better quality sold at market prices in the wealthier suburbs of Cairo can go up to 13 cents a loaf.


To keep the price of subsidised bread low for Egypt's 80 million people, the national budget has had to take a big hit this year.

The world's largest importer of wheat, Egypt has spent an extra $850m on wheat for subsidised bread. The total bill is expected to reach $2.67bn.


According to figures cited by the World Bank in a 2005 study, a fifth of the country's population live below the poverty line. Another 13% are just above it and for them, any wobble in consumer prices means they go under.

No-one has yet worked out the impact of the latest price rises on poverty, but it is clear the government believes it needs to intervene to absorb some of the increases.

So it is allowing up to 15 million new names to be added to the register of people eligible to receive subsidised oil, sugar, rice and tea.

Strikes wave


In a country with so many people struggling to make ends meet, the authorities are also well aware of the potential for social unrest should prices continue to soar.

In 1977 there were massive riots when it was announced that the government would allow the prices of a list of essential goods to go up.

So now the authorities are promising big salary increases and the state press carries almost daily assurances from the president that meeting the basic needs of citizens is a government priority.


In the last two years Egypt has been swept by an unprecedented wave of strikes in both public and privately-owned factories and even in some government departments.

In almost all cases, improved pay was the main demand, and nearly always the workers got much of what they wanted.


Many commentators are now noting that it is not just people in traditionally low-paid jobs who are complaining.

Even those who have always been seen as part of the middle class say they are suffering from the erosion of any buying power their salaries may have formerly had.


Indeed, doctors have become the latest group threatening to go on strike unless their pay is increased.

Egyptians hit by rising food prices
As the BBC looks at the impact of rising food prices around the world, Heba Saleh reports from Cairo where soaring costs hit the country's poor - and the government that subsidises their bread.

Many families are having to cut back on meat
Battle for bread
A crowd of people jostle each other as they wait for subsidised bread outside a small bakery on a narrow unpaved back street in Imbaba, a poor suburb of Cairo.

A worker comes to the counter with a tray of hot bread just out from the oven and starts handing out stacks of loaves of round, flat bread to the people at the front of the queue.

It is nine o'clock in the morning, and the queue is full of housewives and government employees who have signed in at their offices, then come to line up for cheap bread to take home to their families later in the day.

Everyone here complains they are being squeezed by the latest wave of price rises.

"Speak about the famine that's taking place now," says Karima Mohamed, a mother of five.


I buy as many loaves as they allow me, 40 to 60 loaves.
Woman shopper
"A bottle of oil has now reached 10 (Egyptian) pounds (90p; $1.80). The government should not make things expensive for the Egyptian people, because we are the poorest of the world. Salaries here have not increased, but prices have gone up threefold and fourfold."
Family budgets, already under pressure in this mainly poor country, are being further strained by the international increases in the prices of staples such as wheat, rice, cooking oil and dairy products.

Some poor families say they have had to reduce their food intake to two meals a day.



They are eating meat even more infrequently than usual - or not at all.



Public purse takes hit


But one commodity which has not gone up is the subsidised baladi bread for which millions of Egyptian queue up patiently every day.




At less than one US cent a loaf, it is a key element of the national diet.

"This bread is very important for me," says Wafaa, a mother of five who works for the tax authority.

"I buy as many loaves as they allow me, 40 to 60 loaves. But I only take it for our daily food, and when tomorrow comes God will take care of it."

Baladi bread of a slightly better quality sold at market prices in the wealthier suburbs of Cairo can go up to 13 cents a loaf.


To keep the price of subsidised bread low for Egypt's 80 million people, the national budget has had to take a big hit this year.

The world's largest importer of wheat, Egypt has spent an extra $850m on wheat for subsidised bread. The total bill is expected to reach $2.67bn.


According to figures cited by the World Bank in a 2005 study, a fifth of the country's population live below the poverty line. Another 13% are just above it and for them, any wobble in consumer prices means they go under.

No-one has yet worked out the impact of the latest price rises on poverty, but it is clear the government believes it needs to intervene to absorb some of the increases.

So it is allowing up to 15 million new names to be added to the register of people eligible to receive subsidised oil, sugar, rice and tea.

Strikes wave


In a country with so many people struggling to make ends meet, the authorities are also well aware of the potential for social unrest should prices continue to soar.

In 1977 there were massive riots when it was announced that the government would allow the prices of a list of essential goods to go up.

So now the authorities are promising big salary increases and the state press carries almost daily assurances from the president that meeting the basic needs of citizens is a government priority.


In the last two years Egypt has been swept by an unprecedented wave of strikes in both public and privately-owned factories and even in some government departments.

In almost all cases, improved pay was the main demand, and nearly always the workers got much of what they wanted.


Many commentators are now noting that it is not just people in traditionally low-paid jobs who are complaining.

Even those who have always been seen as part of the middle class say they are suffering from the erosion of any buying power their salaries may have formerly had.


Indeed, doctors have become the latest group threatening to go on strike unless their pay is increased.



March 17, 2008 | 8:39 PM Comments  0 comments

Tags:


It's the right thing to do.
About this event: Let's Share Our Differences
Related to country: United States

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Hub health board to restaurants: Hold the trans fat,Now banned in Boston: artery-clogging trans fat.,The city's health board gave final, unanimous approval yesterday to a ban on the artificial substance in french fries, doughnuts, and other dishes made in restaurants and grocery stores.

"It's the right thing to do," said Harold Cox, a member of the Boston Public Health Commission.

Boston joins a growing number of cities, including New York and Philadelphia, and the town of Brookline in banning the ingredient. Trans fat has been linked to heart disease in humans and to diabetes in experimental animals.

The first phase of the ban goes into effect in September and will apply to the use of cooking oils, shortening, and margarine containing artificial trans fat. The makers of baked goods will have a year to eliminate trans fat from their products.

Packaged goods clearly labeled as containing the substance can still be sold, although most major manufacturers have already removed it.

The Boston prohibition would cover all restaurants, including school and hospital cafeterias, as well as fresh food prepared in groceries and delis.

City inspectors will visit businesses to make sure they comply with the ban, and scofflaws could face fines of up to $1,000 for each violation.

The prohibition faced only scant opposition. Of more than 90 written comments, only three were antagonistic. And when the Health Commission held a public hearing yesterday on the ban, only four people showed up.

Janine M. Harrod, director of government affairs for the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, said members of the trade group were worried they could roll up multiple fines if an inspector found, say, several products containing artificial trans fat. But a commission attorney stressed that regulators do not intend to be punitive and promised instead to work with chefs to cook up dishes free of trans fats.

March 16, 2008 | 7:33 PM Comments  0 comments

Tags:


Public purse takes hit.
About this event: Let's Share Our Differences
Related to country: Egypt

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Egyptians hit by rising food prices, As the BBC looks at the impact of rising food prices around the world, Heba Saleh reports from Cairo where soaring costs hit the country's poor - and the government that subsidises their bread.

Many families are having to cut back on meat
Battle for bread
A crowd of people jostle each other as they wait for subsidised bread outside a small bakery on a narrow unpaved back street in Imbaba, a poor suburb of Cairo.

A worker comes to the counter with a tray of hot bread just out from the oven and starts handing out stacks of loaves of round, flat bread to the people at the front of the queue.

It is nine o'clock in the morning, and the queue is full of housewives and government employees who have signed in at their offices, then come to line up for cheap bread to take home to their families later in the day.

Everyone here complains they are being squeezed by the latest wave of price rises.

"Speak about the famine that's taking place now," says Karima Mohamed, a mother of five.


I buy as many loaves as they allow me, 40 to 60 loaves.
Woman shopper
"A bottle of oil has now reached 10 (Egyptian) pounds (90p; $1.80). The government should not make things expensive for the Egyptian people, because we are the poorest of the world. Salaries here have not increased, but prices have gone up threefold and fourfold."
Family budgets, already under pressure in this mainly poor country, are being further strained by the international increases in the prices of staples such as wheat, rice, cooking oil and dairy products.

Some poor families say they have had to reduce their food intake to two meals a day.



They are eating meat even more infrequently than usual - or not at all.



Public purse takes hit


But one commodity which has not gone up is the subsidised baladi bread for which millions of Egyptian queue up patiently every day.




At less than one US cent a loaf, it is a key element of the national diet.

"This bread is very important for me," says Wafaa, a mother of five who works for the tax authority.

"I buy as many loaves as they allow me, 40 to 60 loaves. But I only take it for our daily food, and when tomorrow comes God will take care of it."

Baladi bread of a slightly better quality sold at market prices in the wealthier suburbs of Cairo can go up to 13 cents a loaf.


To keep the price of subsidised bread low for Egypt's 80 million people, the national budget has had to take a big hit this year.

The world's largest importer of wheat, Egypt has spent an extra $850m on wheat for subsidised bread. The total bill is expected to reach $2.67bn.


According to figures cited by the World Bank in a 2005 study, a fifth of the country's population live below the poverty line. Another 13% are just above it and for them, any wobble in consumer prices means they go under.

No-one has yet worked out the impact of the latest price rises on poverty, but it is clear the government believes it needs to intervene to absorb some of the increases.

So it is allowing up to 15 million new names to be added to the register of people eligible to receive subsidised oil, sugar, rice and tea.

Strikes wave


In a country with so many people struggling to make ends meet, the authorities are also well aware of the potential for social unrest should prices continue to soar.

In 1977 there were massive riots when it was announced that the government would allow the prices of a list of essential goods to go up.

So now the authorities are promising big salary increases and the state press carries almost daily assurances from the president that meeting the basic needs of citizens is a government priority.


In the last two years Egypt has been swept by an unprecedented wave of strikes in both public and privately-owned factories and even in some government departments.

In almost all cases, improved pay was the main demand, and nearly always the workers got much of what they wanted.


Many commentators are now noting that it is not just people in traditionally low-paid jobs who are complaining.

Even those who have always been seen as part of the middle class say they are suffering from the erosion of any buying power their salaries may have formerly had.


Indeed, doctors have become the latest group threatening to go on strike unless their pay is increased.

March 13, 2008 | 6:51 PM Comments  0 comments

Tags:


Human Dignity and Mutual Respect .
About this event: African And Arab Regional Conference On Electronic Transaction Security, Digital Signature And PKI
Related to country: Egypt

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Pope to host summit with Muslims
Pope Benedict XVI will host landmark Catholic-Muslim talks in November to improve ties between the two religions.
The announcement was made in a joint statement after a two-day meeting between senior Vatican and Muslim leaders in Rome.

Catholic-Muslim relations soured after a 2006 speech in Germany in which the Pope quoted a 14th Century Byzantine emperor's criticisms of Islam.

The Regensburg speech provoked Muslim fury and triggered protests worldwide.

But it also prompted 138 Muslim scholars from 43 countries to launch an appeal to the Pope for greater theological dialogue, called the Common Word.

Since then the number of signatories to the appeal has grown to more than 200.

Wider dialogue

The joint statement said the first Catholic-Muslim summit would be held in Rome on 4-6 November and would involve 24 religious leaders and scholars from each side.

It said the Pope would address the meeting on the themes of "Love of God, Love of Neighbour", "Theological and Spiritual Foundation" and "Human Dignity and Mutual Respect".

Catholic and Muslim leaders hope the forum will start a regular official dialogue between the two religions.

The conference will take place just over a year after the Regensburg speech.

Although the pontiff has repeatedly expressed regret for the reaction to his comments, he stopped short of the clear apology sought by Muslims.

But the BBC's Frances Kennedy in Rome says the Vatican is now clearly convinced of the need for a wider, if more difficult, dialogue with Islam.


March 6, 2008 | 2:07 PM Comments  0 comments

Tags:


He's an excellent speaker.
About this event: Let's Share Our Differences
Related to country: United States

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Clinton says wife will repair economy,Former president in Cleveland area
Former President Clinton yesterday tried to conjure up warm memories of the 1990s when he served two terms as president.

He spoke about jobs, the economy, and the cost of gasoline - painting a picture of better times a decade ago.

He promised crowds in the Cleveland suburbs of Kirtland and Lakewood that good times will be back again - if Ohio voters make his wife the Democratic nominee for president and put a Clinton back in the White House.

On Tuesday, Mr. Clinton's wife, U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York, will face off with U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois in Ohio's Democratic presidential primary. Up for grabs will be 162 delegates at the Democratic National Convention, which will play a pivotal role in the race for the party's nomination for president.

Mr. Clinton, speaking in front of a packed gym at Kirtland High School yesterday morning, outlined what's changed since he left office eight years ago, explaining the impact of manufacturing job losses, declining wages, and the rising costs of health care and oil.
"Nobody is getting a raise, the cost of health care is up, the cost of education is up 75 percent, the cost of gas is through the roof," Mr. Clinton said. "In this decade, over 90 percent of the economic benefit has gone to the top 10 percent, and about half of that to the top 1 percent."

He promised that his wife would bring solutions to the economic problems facing the country, saying she would create jobs, end the war in Iraq, and provide leadership on issues like education, health care, and energy policy

His visit to Lakewood High School concluded a nine-city, three day tour across the state which began in Dayton on Thursday. Mr. Clinton, who ran behind schedule by about 90 minutes at his two appearances in Ohio yesterday, was joined by other political leaders, including Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, a strong supporter of his wife.

Introducing the former president to the gymnasium at Kirtland High School, Ohio Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, a Clinton supporter since Mr. Clinton's first presidential election 16 years ago, tapped into the Clinton nostalgia.

"Bill and Hillary Clinton for eight years set this nation on a new course and we have now the best chance we have since then, not only to take that course and set it right again, but to take it to new heights," Mr. Fisher said.

John Valentic, a 36-year-old social studies teacher at Kirtland High School, said he is still deciding between Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama.

He came out yesterday in part to experience the "pageantry" that accompanied the visit of the former president.

"There is a definite aura about the Clintons that some criticize because they don't want a two-for-one package ... but they know how to get stuff done," Mr. Valentic said.

Tom Yanks, 54, of Lakewood, left yesterday's speech at Lakewood High School in awe of the former president's oratory skills.

"He's an excellent speaker," said Mr. Yates, who decided to vote for Mrs. Clinton after hearing her husband speak.

"He is the best. No one can deliver a message better than he can."

He added, "When you look back at the Clinton White House, we had a good economy and we weren't fighting with anyone. [Mrs. Clinton] was there with him and she has the same philosophy."

March 5, 2008 | 4:29 PM Comments  0 comments

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