Cairo – Egypt’s parliament approved a cabinet reshuffle on Tuesday that replaced nine ministers of the 34-member government, according to state television, after four weeks of deliberations by Prime Minister Sherif Ismail.
Lawmaker Ali Moselhy was appointed the new minister of supply. He served as minister of solidarity between 2005 and 2011 under the rule of ousted president Honsy Mubarak.
Ministries of investment and international cooperation were merged, with current International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr heading the combined ministry.
The reshuffle included a replacement of agriculture, local development, trade, education and transportation ministers.
Ismail has been serving as prime minister since September 2015.
His government was criticised for failing to deal with the economic problems in the country.
Egypt’s annual inflation rate reached 29.6 per cent in January, the highest in a decade.
The price hikes are attributed to the liberalisation of the local currency in November as well as an austerity programme that included subsidy cuts and additional taxes.
Media reports over the past months said the delay in finalising the new cabinet was because tens of nominees have rejected ministerial positions.