At a roadside cafe in downtown Cairo, Abu Ali was mid-domino throw when the lights snapped off under new early-closing orders enacted to curb Egypt’s soaring energy bill due to the US-Israel war on Iran.
“I used to stay here until 2am,” the 63-year-old said, tapping his tiles as the street went dark.
“Now I’m home by 11 at most, just watching the news. This is not the Cairo we know.”
The month-long order instituted last week shutters shops at 9pm on weekdays and 10pm on weekends, with a brief extension to 11pm expected for the Coptic Easter holidays.
It’s a jarring shift for nocturnal Cairenes.
Thursday nights usually buzz with families strolling between storefronts, teenagers lingering over ice cream and music spilling out of cafes, well into the early hours of the morning.
Now each evening collapses into a final frantic hour of last-minute shopping before fluorescent lights flicker out and shutters rattle down.
Police patrols ensure compliance and soon only delivery scooters remain, zig-zagging through the dark.
“This is usually when work starts,” shopworker Ali Haggag said, standing outside his suddenly quiet clothing store.
The city once famed for never sleeping now “feels like Covid again”, he added, recalling the 2020 lockdowns that emptied its streets.
Well-to-do Cairenes have flocked to Nileside restaurants and international hotels, exempt from the order as tourism establishments.
But small businesses are already feeling the squeeze. Haggag estimates his shop has lost more than half its revenue in a matter of days.
Officials say the decision was unavoidable, given the country’s heavy reliance on imported fuel.
Global energy prices have surged since the US and Israeli war on Iran began in late February.
Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly has said Egypt’s monthly energy import bill more than doubled between January and March to $2.5 billion.
Around 60% of the country’s $20bn annual oil budget goes toward powering the grid.
In recent weeks, the government has introduced what it calls “exceptional” measures, including hiking fuel prices, slowing state projects, enacting remote work on Sundays and dimming streetlights.
Critics say early closures are disproportionately affecting the informal economy, which accounts for some two-thirds of all jobs.
“Millions of small businesses depend on evening foot traffic,” economist Wael el-Nahas said. “Cutting those hours means cutting incomes.”
Already the pound has shed some 15% of its value since the war began, soaring to a record high of 54.3 to the dollar, while inflation hit 13.6% in March.
At another downtown cafe, an owner said staff now rotate shifts. “Half the workers work one day and stay home the next,” he said.
Still, some shopkeepers remain optimistic. Essam Farid, 67, shrugged: “People will adapt.”
Some coffee shops have already implemented an old Covid-era tactic: turn down the lights, pull the shutters halfway, then keep admitting customers while a kid on the corner keeps watch for the police.
But the shake-up has already rocked two major industries: cinema and tourism.
Film producer Gaby Khoury said cinemas are losing more than 60% of their revenues.
“Most box-office income comes from 9pm and midnight screenings,” he said. “This is catastrophic”.
Several film releases have been postponed, while some productions have been delayed indefinitely, he added.
Tourism, a crucial source of foreign currency, also fears a heavy setback.
By 9pm, shop owners stack their goods, turn off display lights and pull down metal shutters, even as tourists continue to wander the alleyways.
“It’s almost 8pm now and tourists are still arriving,” Ahmed Ali, a shopkeeper, said. “How can you expect me to close at nine? Will tourists be able to leave in just one hour? It’s unreasonable.”
AFP
