Egyptian President Sissi says he will step down when his term ends in 2030

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, 71, announced Saturday that he would not seek to remain in office beyond the end of his term in 2030.

’’The period leading to 2030 will be the end of my presidency, if I am still alive. The matter is perfectly settled and it will not be up for discussion,’’ he said during a graduation ceremony at the Military Academy. However, the president also said he was planning a constitutional revision.

Egypt’s constitution, approved in 2014 after the military ousted Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in 2013, initially limited the presidency to two four-year terms. A 2019 constitutional amendment extended presidential terms to six years and included a transitional provision allowing Sissi to seek another term in 2024. Critics and opposition figures fear that another constitutional revision could allow him to remain in office beyond 2030.

On Saturday, Sissi said the coming years should be devoted to developing a new generation of leaders, particularly through the Military Academy, which trains hundreds of aspiring officials for leadership roles in the state.

Since the monarchy was overthrown in 1952, Egypt has had six presidents, five of whom came from the military. Sissi was speaking from the New Administrative Capital, a showcase city about 50 kilometers east of Cairo and one of the flagship projects of his 12 years in power.

While the authorities consider such large-scale projects essential to Egypt’s long-term growth, they have also contributed to a sharp rise in the country’s external debt.

Meanwhile, human rights organizations continue to criticize restrictions on political opposition, civil society and freedom of expression. The government rejects these criticisms, insisting that its policies are necessary to preserve the country’s stability and security.