Johannesburg: Egypt`s interim president Adly Mansour has said a referendum on a new draft constitution would be held next month.
In a speech to the nation, flanked by high-ranking officials, Mansour called upon the Egyptians to vote in a referendum on the revised draft constitution on January 14 and 15.
According to a news channel, it will be the first step towards elected rule in a country deeply polarised after president Mohamed Morsi was ousted by the military.
The constitutional referendum is to be followed by parliamentary and presidential elections in mid-2014.
A 50-member panel drafted the new constitution after the interim authorities suspended the previous version of the charter written under Morsi.
Mansour praised the revised draft for its provisions on the `securing of human rights, freedoms and the balancing of powers,` the report said.
He said that it was a good start on which to build the institutions of a democratic and modern state, it added.
