Al-Sisi issues a decree for the formation of national media and press institutions

CAIRO – 12 April 2017: President Abdel-Fatah Al-Sisi has issued a decree on Tuesday to establish three new bodies that regulate the work of the media in Egypt.

The three bodies are the Supreme Council for Media Regulation (SCMR); National Press Authority (NPA); and the National Media Authority (NMA).

In December, the House of Representatives passed the Media institution law with a two-thirds majority after six months of discussions. Press Syndicates and tens of experts participated in formulating the new law.

Sisi picked veteran journalist and Ex-Al-Helal publishing house CEO, Makram Mohamed Ahmed for SCRM, Karam Gabr to head the NPA, Gabr worked for 30 years as a journalist and as an editor in chief for Rosalyoussef magazine, and Hussein Zein for the NMA.

According to the law, each body is composed of 13 members selected by the president, parliament, Press Syndicate, the Higher Council for Universities, the State Council and a representative from the Ministry of Finance.

The NPA will replace the current Higher Press Council, taking charge of supervising state-owned press organizations. The NPA will be also responsible for selecting board chairmen and the editors of state-owned publications.

While the NMA will replace the current Radio and Television Union (RTU), and will be mandated with overseeing state-owned audio-visual, radio and digital media institutions in a manner that guarantees their independence, professionalism and profitability.

The SCMR will take charge of supervising the general performance of the media in Egypt with a focus on creating ethic framework and by which all media organizations must abide, whether they be public, private or owned by political parties.