President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi issued a decree law on Monday to offer new notes to fund the project, the state-run MENA news agency reported.

No specific amount was mentioned, however.

In September last year, Egypt’s people bought bonds with a 12% coupon worth $8.4bn, the amount the authorities said was required for financing the expansion.

But last month, Egyptian consultants estimated the cost of expanding the Suez Canal could hit $15bn.

The