CAIRO - Egypt will be adding a bonus of 100 Egyptian pounds ($5.30) to its food subsidy cards for a period of 6 months to allow beneficiaries to cope with rising food prices, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on Thursday.

Egypt will spend 1 billion pounds ($52.99 million) per month to provide the assistance to 9.1 million families, Madbouly added, to spend on food staples provided as part of the country's subsidy programme which includes basics like rice, cooking oil and sugar.

The government aims to add the bonus from the end of August, he said.

($1 = 18.8700 Egyptian pounds)

(Reporting by Nadine Awadalla, Lilian Wagdy, Omar Fahmy; Editing by Chris Reese)