Coronavirus: Shops in Egypt Can Open until 11pm

On Sunday, the Egyptian Prime Minister, Moustafa Madbouly, chaired a meeting for the higher committee tasked with managing the coronavirus crisis to follow up the current epidemiological situation in the country.

During the meeting, the committee announced that all commercial shops are set to open in accordance with the summer working hours, starting June 1. The decision has ended a three-week decision to close these facilities at 9 pm.

The summer working hours of commercial shops and shopping malls are set from 7 am to 11 pm on weekdays and until midnight during weekends. Coffee shops and restaurants can operate from 5 am to 1 am throughout the week.

The country will, however, continue its ban on weddings in closed halls.

Madbouly said the government will apply fines on violating shops addressed by the decision. These shops will be immediately closed for two weeks and will be re-closed for a month if the violation is repeated, he added.

Cabinet Spokesman Nader Saad, after the meeting, stated that the fine will be EGP 4,000.

Weddings will be allowed in open areas only, Madbouly said, affirming the continuing ban on weddings in closed halls.

The meeting affirmed the continuation of applying all coronavirus preventive measures in significantly crowded public areas, Madbouly said.

These measures include imposing fines on violations and preventing cafes from offering shisha (hookah), he explained.

As per the committee’s decisions, the street celebrations known as ‘Mawlid’ as well as wedding and mourning marquees are banned, Madbouly said.

The decision to close shops and restaurants at 9 pm came as Egypt suffered from a significant surge in coronavirus cases and deaths amid the third wave of the virus.

This corresponds with the state’s campaign to vaccinate citizens against the coronavirus, which started in January. The country has so far received millions of coronavirus doses of the Sinopharm and AstraZeneca vaccines.