The Egyptian parliament yesterday approved the appointment of an army general as minister of supply and to replace Khaled Hanafi, who resigned from his post at the end of August after he was accused of corruption.
Charges against Hanafi are still being investigated.
Prior to his appointment, Major General Ali Sheikh worked as head of the Public Service Division at the Egyptian Armed Forces.
According to the state-run news agency (MENA), the parliament approved Sheikh’s appointment with majority. The new minister was nominated by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi.
The Egyptian Supply Ministry oversees the running of the country’s massive state food subsidy programme. Its affiliate, the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), is the main government agency in charge of importing and purchasing grain in the country.
Egypt is the world’s largest importer of wheat.