12:03 p.m
Wednesday, February 22, 2023
Books – Youssef Afifi:
We have a surplus and we do not suffer from rice production.. With these words, Ibrahim El-Ashmawy, First Assistant Minister of Supply and Head of the Internal Trade Development Authority, confirmed that Egypt does not suffer from a crisis in rice production and has self-sufficiency and a surplus in rice.
Egypt annually produces more than 5 million tons of barley, of which 3.5 million tons are extracted after bleaching, and this amount exceeds Egypt’s needs for rice.
The causes of the crisis
Al-Ashmawy said, in press statements, that the real reason behind the high price of rice is due to the fodder crisis, explaining that stopping work with the price range in the rice commodity is a suspension and not a cancellation as a result of the end of the decision period issued on November 17, 2022 and ended on February 17, 2023. The term was three months.
He added that the decision on the issue of working with the idea of the price range or guiding prices will be after a meeting within hours to decide on the possibility of continuing to work with the price range or not, saying: “We do not have compulsory pricing, and that is why we cannot say that there is a stop to it, but we have an indicative price range.” “.
In mid-February 2022, the Egyptian Council of Ministers approved a draft decision regarding considering the commodity “rice” as a strategic product in applying the provision of Article (8) of the Consumer Protection Law promulgated by Law No. 181 of 2018, and it is forbidden to lock it from circulation, whether by hiding it or not. Putting it up for sale, or refraining from selling it, or in any other way.
Al-Ashmawy pointed out that rice is a strategic commodity according to the decision of the Council of Ministers, like wheat, and here it is necessary to link between rice and fodder. The price of a ton of barley rice is 15 thousand pounds, and the fraction rate ranges between 3-8%, and a ton is traded between 20-22 thousand pounds. .
Al-Ashmawy attributed the price fluctuations of the rice market to several reasons, including:
First: the fodder problem, which led some to resort to rice as an alternative commodity to feed livestock, as Egypt imports 85% of the fodder, and some producers used rice as a substitute for fodder.
Second: speculation on feed.
Third: Some withheld the rice commodity for the purpose of speculation, but there is no shortage in the quantities produced, as the surplus is 400 thousand tons of rice annually, with needs estimated at about 3.600 million tons.
Whoever violates the government’s instructions shall be punished with imprisonment for a period of no less than one year, and a fine of no less than one hundred thousand pounds and no more than two million pounds, or the equivalent of the value of the goods subject of the crime, whichever is greater. years and the value of the fine shall be doubled by itself. In all cases, the court shall order confiscation, and the judgment shall be published in two widely circulated daily newspapers at the expense of the convict.
Imported rice
Ragab Shehata, head of the Rice Division of the Federation of Egyptian Industries, confirmed that Egypt does not suffer from a shortage of rice, but rather has a surplus of it, and large quantities will be pumped in the coming days after liberalizing its price, indicating that imported rice is scheduled to arrive in the first half of next March at reasonable prices.
The Supply Commodities Authority launched a tender to import rice from abroad to increase Egypt’s strategic stockpile, which is sufficient for a period of 6.3 months, according to official statements by the Minister of Supply, Ali Al-Moselhi, at the end of last January.
Shehata said, in televised statements, that the rice crisis was not in its unavailability, but rather in the guiding pricing, which was an obstacle to some supermarkets because the real price of rice was higher than the pricing value, indicating that shopkeepers cannot violate the pricing and set Higher price because it is against the law.
According to the statements of a source in the Rice Division of the Chamber of Grain Industry of the Federation of Industries, the price of a ton of barley rice increased in all governorates of the Republic, to record about 15.5 thousand pounds per ton for the first time in its history.
Shehata added that after stopping the implementation of the pricing decision, and liberalizing the price of rice, it was offered in abundance and at reasonable prices, and the price did not increase except by one or two pounds, as the fair price of rice at the present time ranges from 20 to 22 pounds, appealing to shopkeepers to deal directly with speculators to obtain luxurious rice. , stressing that any surplus will be directed to the state for storage.
According to the Federation of Egyptian Industries, the price of rice has entered the stage of competitiveness among traders after the compulsory pricing decision was abolished, and the citizen is the one who will monitor the market.
And the government decided to cancel the compulsory pricing of white rice a month before the expiration of the deadline for that, according to a decision by the Council of Ministers, which was signed on Thursday, February 16, and was published in the Official Gazette.