Arab Finance: Egypt is planning to set up a company under the Future of Egypt Authority to license artisanal gold miners and release those detained for illegal mining, Mona Shaker, a National Front Party lawmaker representing Aswan, said in a video posted on Facebook.
The decision came following a meeting convened by tribal leader and businessman Ibrahim Al-Organi, Shaker noted.
The lawmaker added that people arrested while prospecting for gold would be released, except those implicated in killings or drug-related offenses.
As for the military, it unveiled it detained 151 Egyptians and 540 foreigners in a crackdown on illegal mining launched since June. It was not immediately clear how many remained in custody or whether the planned releases would also cover foreign detainees.
Pro-government media reported that President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi directed the meeting, although no official statement has been issued, according to Reuters.
The proposed arrangement is expected to bring informal gold prospectors into a licensed system, following a military-led crackdown on illegal mining.
It would also give the Future of Egypt Authority, which reports directly to the presidency and was initially established under the military, a role in a sector the government seeks to expand.
