Rear Admiral Tim Lowe CBE appointed Chief Executive and Accounting Officer of the UK Hydrographic Office

The Egyptian government has enlisted British companies backed by the Department for International Trade to help the country reform its healthcare system.

Vodafone, the British telecom operation has won a major contract that will from a key-part of the Egyptian government’s push to roll out NHS-style universal healthcare for every man, woman and child in the country.

With backing from the Department for International Trade, Vodafone has secured a £100m project to build Egypt’s new Health Insurance IT system.

The government in Cairo want the IT to underpin a new primary healthcare system similar to that which operates in the UK.

Partnering Vodafone is IT giant DXC Technology, who are already responsible for the IT infrastructure services across the NHS Supply Chain.

It comes as UK firms and government work together to undertake a range of other healthcare activity, to share the benefits of the NHS and British pharmaceutical industry with Egypt.

• The NHS has trained 33 Egyptian GPs, with plans for a total of 300 doctors to be trained by 2020

• Department for International Trade and Healthcare UK have supported over £1.3 billion of NHS exports since 2016

• Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) to boost local manufacturing hubs in Cairo to meet soaring local demand, creating 60 new jobs

Vodafone to help build universal healthcare IT platform

Vodafone’s programme in partnership with DXC is to provide a digital healthcare services platform to facilitate the roll-out of Egypt’s universal health insurance scheme.

It will begin as a pilot in Port Said, before being rolled out to four other governorates and then nationwide, potentially benefiting millions of ordinary Egyptians.

The NHS is also sharing its world-leading healthcare expertise with doctors and nurses from Egypt thanks to a healthcare Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that offers training to medical professionals in Egypt. NHS practitioners have already trained the first group of 33 GPs in Egypt, with plans for a total of 300 doctors to be trained by 2020.

Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox said:

We in Britain are proud of our NHS and how it provides access to healthcare for everyone. I myself used to be an NHS doctor before becoming an MP, so I know how important it is.

It is a system that is respected around the world and we want to help other countries do what they can to secure the same benefits for their people.

That’s why we’ve stood by Vodafone as it sought and secured this contract which, as part of the Egyptian government’s reforms, will help revolutionise healthcare for people here – It is the beginning of an Egyptian NHS for the Egyptian people.

GSK invest in Cairo manufacturing plants

British pharmaceutical giant GSK Consumer Healthcare, a GlaxoSmithKline company has also invested around 100m Egyptian Pounds (EGP) in two major production lines in Cairo to meet local demand for its products.

GSK Consumer Healthcare aims to produce more Voltaren Emulgel (pain relief) and Otrivin (decongestant spray) through local manufacturing, creating 60 new jobs in Egypt. Demand for British medicines in Africa has soared by 78% over the last decade and pharmaceutical exports to the region are now worth £455.9m.

Egypt is already bearing the fruit of its cooperation with the UK as a new wave of British investors seek to do business in Egypt. To further enhance the strategic ties between the UK and African countries, the government is hosting an Africa Investment Summit on 20 January 2020 in London.

ENDS

Notes to editors

• Vodafone is the leading telecom operator in Egypt and has 40mn subscribers – twice as many as in the UK

• Latest statistics from the ONS show UK firms sold more overseas in the 2018/19 financial year, £639.9 billion, than at any time since records began

• The UK has now achieved export growth in the last 36 consecutive 12-month periods on a rolling basis

• Separate OECD data shows UK exports grew faster than Germany, France and Italy between 2016 and 2018

• The NHS Long Term Plan launched earlier this year, supported by a historic funding settlement, to deliver an NHS fit for the future. This includes bringing the NHS into the digital age, by improving systems and using new technologies to give people access to services and information they need in a way that works for them

Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes yesterday (Thursday 30 May) met with construction workers in Liverpool to discuss plans for the new skills-based immigration system, which be introduced from 2021.

The minister met with international workers during a visit to a Willmott Dixon construction site, where she heard first-hand experiences of working in the UK and using the immigration system.

She also visited the Business Growth Hub in Manchester, where she met with small business owners to consult on the government’s plans for the future immigration system.

The visits are part of a year-long engagement programme across the UK to listen to the views of businesses and communities with over 80 events held nationally so far.

Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes said:

Our new skills-based immigration system will be built around skills and what people can contribute, rather than where they come from.

Speaking directly with businesses and communities about these plans is vital because its important they work for the whole country, including cities like Manchester and Liverpool.

Our plans will allow us to attract the talented workers we need for our economy to prosper but also deliver on the referendum result and end free movement.

The government’s proposals will scrap the annual cap on the number of visas issued for skilled workers, thereby removing barriers for businesses who need overseas talent.

They will also abolish the resident labour market test for high-skilled workers and widen the skills threshold to include people with qualifications equivalent of a levels.

The new immigration and borders system will be implemented in a phased approach from 2021 and full details are available in the government’s White Paper.

The Government Actuary, Martin Clarke will continue in his role for a further 5-year term. He was originally appointed in 2014, and the Prime Minister has now approved his reappointment.

As the Government Actuary, Martin Clarke is the principal actuarial adviser to the government. He leads the Government Actuary’s Department (GAD) and is its Accounting Officer.

Speaking about his reappointment, Mr. Clarke said: “I’m really pleased this means I can continue to lead and work with the teams in GAD for the next 5 years. As the department marks its centenary this year, I believe this sense of continuity is just as important as we continue to work on complex and long-term issues for our clients.”

GAD supports effective decision-making and robust reporting within government as the first-choice provider of actuarial and specialist analysis, advice and assurance.