Egyptians Urged to Dig Into Pockets to Finance National Recovery
- El-Sisi appeals to patriotism as oil slump endangers Gulf aid
- Suez certificates succeed in luring under-the-mattress cash
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When an ancient Egyptian statue was put up for sale by a British museum, the government in Cairo called for its rescue on behalf of the nation -- without offering to put up the cash itself.
Instead, the minister for antiquities urged Egyptians to dip into their pockets and buy it. He was only following his boss’s example: such appeals have become a policy trademark under President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi. The ex-general raised more than $8 billion to expand the Suez Canal by selling investment certificates to the public, and may be tempted to repeat the formula.