Egypt’s Transport Minister Kamel al-Wazir implemented a major leadership overhaul in the country’s National Railway Authority, following three deadly train accidents in under one month.
Wazir’s decisions are as follows:
1. Ashraf Raslan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Authority for Egyptian Railways, will now hold the position of Adviser to the Minister for Railways Affairs.
2. Mostafa Abdel Latif shall be delegated as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Authority for Egyptian Railways for a period of one year.
3. Shaaban Mahmoud Moussa be appointed as Chairman of the Board of Directors and Managing Director of the Egyptian Company for the Renovation and Maintenance of Railways.
4. Mohamed Amer Abdel Aziz, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Authority for Egyptian Railways for the Engineering Projects and Development Sector, shall be assigned to carry out the duties of the position of Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Authority for the Joint Services Sector, in addition to his work.
5. Emad Asaad Abdel-Malak, Head of the Central Administration for the Authority’s Facilities in the Joint Services Sector of the National Authority for Egyptian Railways, shall be delegated to work as Head of the Central Administration for Central Region Affairs in the Infrastructure Sector of the Authority for a period of one year.
6. Mostafa Mohamed Mostafa Shaheen shall be assigned to work as head of the Central Administration for Signals and Communications at the National Authority for Egyptian Railways.
7. Magdy Abdel Moneim el-Sabbagh, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Authority for Egyptian Railways for the Joint Services Sector, will be assigned the position of a sector consultant in the Authority.
8. Sami Mohamed Afifi Shalaby, Director General of Locomotives Workshops in Cairo, is now assigned to the position of advisor to the head of the authority.
9. Hussein Rashidi Mohamed Khalil, Head of the Central Administration for Signals and Communications at the National Authority for Egyptian Railways, shall be appointed as Vice Chairman of the Authority’s Board of Directors for the Infrastructure Sector.
10. Sami Abdel Fattah Abdel Majeed, Head of the Central Administration for Maintenance of Mobile Units for Regions at the National Railway Authority of Egypt, shall be assigned to the position of Vice Chairman of the Authority’s Board of Directors for the Mobile Units Maintenance and Technical Support Sector.
According to a ministry statement, the aim of these decisions is not just to make leadership adjustments, but to also introduce new, competent officials in preparation for the upgrade of Egypt’s poorly maintained railway network.
Train accidents have been a common occurence in Egypt, with some resulting in a large number of deaths and injuries.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has ordered a rebuild of Egypt’s national rail system in which authorities will update the lines, add new lines, and increase overall safety.
The railway renovation is part of a larger ongoing transportation overhaul that includes new high-speed trains, additional metro lines, and road improvement projects.
