The suspended constitution was drawn up last year by an Islamist-dominated assembly that was boycotted by liberals and Christians, who said it failed to protect properly human rights and social justice. Egypt's military put the constitution on ice following the ousting of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi on July 3.
The new draft is due to be voted on in a referendum, with the entire process set to take four months. A revised constitution has to be in place before Egypt can hold fresh parliamentary elections which, according to a decree issued after Morsi's removal, are expected within some six months. They will then be followed by a presidential vote.
Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood is demanding the reinstatement of the deposed president and is refusing to recognise the new interim cabinet, sworn into office on Tuesday. Many of Egypt's political parties have voiced concern about how the new constitutional committees will be chosen. The Islamist-led committee that drafted the old constitution was drawn from elected parliamentarians.