Cabinet of Egypt
Encyclopedia
The Cabinet of Egypt is the chief executive
Executive (government)
Executive branch of Government is the part of government that has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the idea of the separation of powers.In many countries, the term...

 body of the Arabic Republic of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

. It consists of the Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...

 and the cabinet ministers.

The government has a leading role in shaping the agenda of the houses of Parliament
Parliament of Egypt
The Parliament of Egypt is the currently dissolved bicameral legislature of Egypt. The Parliament is located in Cairo, Egypt's capital. As the legislative branch of the Egyptian government, the Parliament enacts laws, approves the general policy of the State, the general plan for economic and...

. It may propose laws to Parliament, as well as amendments during parliamentary meetings. It may make use of some procedures to speed up parliamentary deliberations.

The government is responsible only to Parliament, specifically the People’s Assembly
People's Assembly of Egypt
The People's Assembly is the lower house of Egypt's bicameral parliament. In spite of its lower status, however, it plays a more important role in drafting legislation and day-to-day legislative duties than the Shura Council, the upper house....

.

The People’s Assembly may pass a motion of censure, forcing the resignation of the cabinet. Ministers have to answer questions from Members of Parliament, both written and oral; this is known as Inquiries to the Government Talebat Ihata.

In addition, ministers attend meetings of the two houses of Parliament when laws pertaining to their areas of responsibility are being discussed.

The details of the cabinet's organisation are set down in articles 153 to 160 of the constitution. Article 155 states that the members of the cabinet have to be sworn in when taking office.

Functions

The Cabinet shall exercise in particular the following functions:
  • Laying down the general policy of the State in collaboration with the President of the Republic and controlling its implementation in accordance with the laws and republican decrees.
  • Directing, co-ordinating and following up the work of the ministries and their different administrations as well as public organizations and institutions.
  • Issuing administrative and executive decisions in accordance with the laws and decrees and supervising their implementation.
  • Preparing draft laws and decrees.
  • Preparing the draft of the general budget of the State.
  • Preparing the draft of the State’s overall plan.
  • Contracting and granting loans in accordance with the rules of the Constitution.
  • Supervising the implementation of law, maintaining State security and protecting the rights of the citizens and the interests of the State.

Ministerial seniority and rank

Traditionally, the cabinet comprises, in decreasing rank:
  • The Prime Minister, Head of the Egyptian government.
  • Ministers, Full Cabinet members. Currently there are 24 full ministers in this government.
  • Ministers of State, described as ‘junior ministers’, are assigned specific responsibilities or agencies. The portfolios of ministers of state are considerably more transient, as positions may be created and dissolved to suit specific short-term government priorities or the specific qualifications of candidates without alterations to the departmental structure, e.g. the Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs.
  • Ministers without portfolio, ministers who do not head specific departments and occasionally attend cabinet meetings, e.g. former Minister without portfolio Omar Suleiman, the former Vice President of Egypt
    Vice President of Egypt
    The Vice President of the Arab Republic of Egypt is a senior official within the Egyptian government. The position was created following the establishment of the republic in 1953....

    .
  • Chairmen of Departments, who head certain important departments that do not fall under the jurisdiction of any of the ministers and answer directly to the Prime Minister, e.g. The Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority.
  • Ministers-Delegate, who assist ministers in areas of their duties and rarely attend cabinet meeting.

Ministerial criteria

The following eligibility conditions must be met constitutionally by all ministers.
  • At least 30 years old natural-born Egyptian citizen, enjoying full civil and political rights.
  • A minister may not work in any independent work, commercial, financial or industrial while in office.

Recent history

The interim cabinet of Essam Sharaf was sworn in on Monday 7 March 2011 by Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces
Supreme Council of the Armed Forces
The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces consists of a body of 20 senior officers in the Egyptian military. As a consequence of the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, the Council took the power to govern Egypt from its departing President Hosni Mubarak on February 11, 2011.The junta meets regularly, as...

 & Minister of Defense.In July 2011, Sharaf fired several ministers although the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces
Supreme Council of the Armed Forces
The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces consists of a body of 20 senior officers in the Egyptian military. As a consequence of the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, the Council took the power to govern Egypt from its departing President Hosni Mubarak on February 11, 2011.The junta meets regularly, as...

 (Scaf) said he didn't have that power. On 21 November 2011, the entire Cabinet offered to resign in the face of the second wave of protests.

Kamal Gazouri's Cabinet

On 24 November 2011, Egypt's military rulers appointed former prime minister Kamal Ganzouri
Kamal Ganzouri
Kamal Ganzouri is an Egyptian economist who became Prime Minister-Designate of Egypt in November 2011. He served as Prime Minister from 1996 to 1999. He came to power in 1996 succeeding Atef Sedki, and was in turn succeeded by Atef Ebeid in 1999...

 to form a new government.

Former Egyptian Cabinets




External links

  • Cabinet.gov.eg official site
  • New Egyptian cabinet takes oath of office, BBC News
    BBC News
    BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...

    , 7 March 2011
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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