Egypt President Sisi tasks housing minister Madbouli to form new govt

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Thursday tasked his housing minister to form a new government, according to a spokesman for the presidency. Former Prime Minister Sherif Ismail stepped down Tuesday days after Sisi was sworn in for a new term. Mostafa Madbouli, who was asked to form the new government, had served as housing minister since 2014. The 52-year-old stood in as prime minister for nearly two months from November when Ismail traveled to Germany for medical treatment, AFP reports. Ismail oversaw tough economic reforms tied to $12 billion in loans from the International Monetary Fund which Cairo secured to ease a fiscal crisis that saw its deficit balloon to 12.5 percent of GDP in 2015-16.