In the village of Benban in Aswan, the largest solar energy station in Africa and the Middle East was established to generate the equivalent of 90% of the energy produced from the High Dam, within the framework of the strategy developed by the New and Renewable Energy Authority, which aims to increase the supply of electricity generated from renewable sources to 42% by Year 2035.

The solar energy project in Benban is one of the largest clean energy projects in the world to confront the electrical energy deficit after the events of January 2011. It was started in 2014 to address the then energy crisis and support the national electricity grid.

In this context, the Strategic Forum for Public Policy and Development Studies “Draya” issues a research paper that sheds light on the Benban solar energy project and its economic and social impacts, in addition to clarifying the funding agencies and those in charge of the project, and how the project contributes to achieving the 2030 sustainable development goals.

The most important results of the paper were as follows:

-The station consists of 32 individual stations, each producing 20-50 MW, and four substations, generating approximately 1.5 GW of power, to support Egypt’s goal of meeting more than a third of its energy needs by 2035 through renewable energies.

-Increasing Egypt’s share of renewable energy sources to reach 20% of the electricity produced in 2022 and 42% by 2035.

-The Benban project enabled Egypt to attract investments worth 146 million US dollars to support this project alone.

-Egypt was able to attract investments amounting to $653 million to support and develop clean energy projects.

-Aswan Governorate witnessed an alliance of 40 international companies to create the largest complex for generating electricity from solar energy, which contributes to enhancing sustainability and generating clean energy. The project received 85% financing from the Bavarian Bank of the United States.

First: Benban station and the reasons for choosing its location

The Benban plant is the fourth largest solar power plant in the world, and was implemented in cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Authority for Effective Finance. It contains 32 power generation stations built on an area of 8,843.3 acres on the Aswan-Cairo desert road in front of the village of Benban, with a capacity of 1,465 megawatts.

The Benban Solar Park was developed, and the area was divided into 41 plots of different sizes. The plots were allocated to about 30 developers who installed solar panels, inverters and other devices, and the state-owned Egyptian Electricity Holding Company built roads and infrastructure, including connections to the electricity grid. . Completely insulated GIS-type stations were constructed for the first time in Egypt, and the construction of the Benban solar power station was completed in 2019.

The New and Renewable Energy Authority selected 39 companies specialized in energy production according to international standards, including 9 international and Arab companies and 30 Egyptian companies out of a total of 200 companies that applied to implement this huge project.

It is worth noting that each of the 32 individual stations produces 20-50 megawatts, and four substations, generating approximately 1.5 gigawatts of energy, with the aim of supporting Egypt’s vision of meeting more than a third of its energy needs by 2035 through renewable energies. .
Reasons for choosing Aswan governorate:

– Availability of solar energy: Aswan has high solar radiation, which means that it receives a large amount of sunlight throughout the year, and this makes it an ideal location for a solar power plant.

– Availability of land: the Egyptian government has provided a large area of land (37.2 square kilometers) in Benban, allowing the development of a large-scale solar park. The availability of such vast territories is necessary to accommodate numerous solar power plants and infrastructure.

– Government support: the Egyptian government supports the development of renewable energy projects, including solar energy. This support includes the provision of land, facilitating permits and providing incentives to attract investment in the renewable energy sector.

– Strategic location: Aswan’s location in Upper Egypt makes it a strategic location for solar energy projects that can contribute significantly to the national energy grid, it allows the generation of clean energy that can be distributed efficiently throughout the country. Aswan is considered the future of the south according to the southern Egypt Development Studies.

Second: the economic and social effects of the solar power plant

Economic effects

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions:

Solar power generation of electricity without releasing greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane or other atmospheric pollutants, reduces the total carbon footprint and protects the environment for future generations, making it an ideal option for a sustainable future.

A source of renewable energy and promoting green energy:

The Benban project is considered an important example of the development of green energy, as it takes advantage of the power of the sun as a sustainable and renewable source, without depleting the limited fossil fuel reserves. This is in line with the global shift towards cleaner and more sustainable energy sources.

Less water consumption:

Unlike some conventional power plants that rely on water for cooling, solar photovoltaic (PV) systems require less water consumption, which contributes to water conservation.

Reducing air and water pollution:

Solar energy production does not generate air or water pollution during operation, which contributes to improved air and water quality

Enhancing energy security

Investing in renewable energy projects such as the Benban project enhances energy security by diversifying energy sources and providing green energy sources, such as solar energy, which provide a reliable and distributed energy supply, reducing dependence on fossil fuel imports. Egypt’s share of renewable energy sources has increased to 20% of the electricity produced in 2022, and it is expected to reach 42% by 2035.

Social effects

Improving the standard of living:

The expansion of employment opportunities and economic development associated with the Benban project can lead to an improvement in the standard of living in local communities, as increasing employment opportunities leads to an increase in income levels and access to basic amenities, which has a great impact on improving the quality of life of citizens.

Community Development:

The project can contribute to the overall development of the local communities surrounding the Benban solar plant, as infrastructure improvements, educational initiatives and social programs are often implemented as part of the corporate social responsibility efforts associated with such projects.

Environmental benefits:

While the impact is primarily economic and energy-related, the transition to renewable energy, as the Benban project contributes to, carries positive impacts on the environment, as reducing dependence on fossil fuels reduces air and water pollution, contributing to the fight against climate change, and enhancing the health and well-being of the public in general.

Skills development:

The implementation of renewable energy projects often includes training programs for local residents, which helps in developing skills and providing work experience to the growing renewable energy workforce, and promotes long-term sustainability.

Third: financing, partnerships and project managers

-The project was established in partnership with the private sector and specialized international expertise, with a total cost of about 4 billion dollars, none of which was borne by the state treasury, according to the Ministry of electricity.

-Aswan governorate witnessed the alliance of 40 international companies to create the largest solar power generation complex, which contributes to promoting sustainability and generating clean energy.

-The project has received 85% financing from the Bavarian Bank of the USA for the project and shows strong financial support from international financial bodies.

– The Bavarian bank provided the United States with a large percentage of debt, while the Arab African International Bank provided 15% of the remaining debt, providing a variety of sources of financing.

-The World Bank’s IFC led an alliance of the African Development Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Bahrain Arab Bank, the CDC Group, the Arab European bank, the green for Growth Fund, finfund, the industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the Austrian Development Bank by pledging USD 653 million to finance the construction and operation of 13 plants by six groups of private energy companies.

-The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (Miga), a member of the World Bank Group, recently approved the provision of USD 210 million in political risk insurance for 13 projects in Benban.

-The EBRD is also involved in financing 16 projects with a total capacity of 750 MW, under a USD 500 million agreement to finance renewable energy in Egypt.

-The alliance also includes the United Nations Green Climate Fund (GCF), the Dutch Development Bank, the FMO Foundation, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the Islamic Foundation for the development of the private sector (ICD).

Fourth: the role of the station in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals 2030

– Economic development: the Benban solar park contributes to the economic development in the region by providing jobs and attracting investments.large-scale renewable energy projects often have positive economic impacts on local communities, as they are expected to achieve the highest economic growth rate in the south and represent the largest share of the population attraction in the southern Egypt development plan as a development resource.

The seventh goal: clean and affordable energy

The Benban solar power plant is directly in line with Goal 7 which aims to ensure access to modern, reliable, sustainable and up-to-date energy for all. By harnessing solar energy, the plant contributes to the generation of clean and renewable energy, reducing dependence on traditional fossil fuels, as the total solar power capacity increased by more than 9 times between 2018 and 2019, from 172 MW at the beginning of 2018 to 1,597 MW by the end of 2019.

Eighth goal: decent work and economic growth

The development and operation of the Benban solar park contributes to the creation of jobs and economic growth in the region. Large-scale renewable energy projects often require a workforce for construction, maintenance and operation, which provides jobs and supports economic development, as the project provided about 20 thousand jobs during the four-year construction period, and 6,000 permanent jobs necessary for the operation of the plant. This project has helped build solar energy expertise within local communities that will be able to benefit from this experience in upcoming projects in Kom Ombo, which is located close to Benban.

Finally, the Benban solar plant is an important step in Egypt’s use of solar energy, as it is one of the most important national projects in Egypt, which represents a milestone in the country’s march towards reliance on renewable energy, and a role model in the field of renewable energy that confirms Egypt’s commitment to transition towards a more sustainable future.. We expect that the project will bring more economic, environmental and social benefits to the Egyptian state in the near term

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In this context, the research paper aims to analyze the regional and international variables to which the Egyptian economy is exposed, clarify the economic effects of these variables on it, as well as shed light on the policies and procedures that the Egyptian economy can follow. Finally, the research paper presents several proposed solutions to enhance the performance of the economy and support its ability to withstand external shocks.

The most important solutions proposed by the paper to enhance the performance of the Egyptian economy were as follows:
-Increase the volume of national projects with a dollar yield and temporarily stop financing projects that need dollar spending.

-Expanding support to the Egyptian industrial sector by paying attention to the strategy of deepening local manufacturing.

-The current boycott campaigns are a golden opportunity for local products to increase their market space through increasing demand for local products.

-The government should focus on increasing the competitiveness and quality of exports and reducing the obstacles facing exporters as exports are a means of obtaining foreign exchange.

-Raising the interest rate will lead to a decline in investment, contraction of economic activity and increasing unemployment.

-Easing the restrictions on obtaining foreign exchange, which the private sector needs to obtain the raw materials necessary for production.

First: Analysis of the regional and international changes to which the Egyptian economy is exposed

The Egyptian economy was subjected to successive shocks (from the corona pandemic to the war in Ukraine). Where it influenced the gains of the economic reform plan, which began since 2016. The Russian-Ukrainian crisis in 2022 has led to significant repercussions on the Egyptian economy as it struggles to recover from the economic consequences of the covid-19 pandemic, as high inflation rates, declining wheat imports and dwindling tourist flow come on top of the negative consequences of this war. Thus, the risk of food insecurity has increased due to the fact that Egypt’s food imports are linked to these two countries.

Egypt sought a new loan from the International Monetary Fund in December 2022 in order to fill part of the financing gap.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund approved a 46-month agreement with Egypt under the Extended Fund Facility worth approximately US$3 billion. The program includes a comprehensive package of policies aimed at maintaining macroeconomic stability and achieving comprehensive growth led by the private sector. The policy package includes a permanent shift to a flexible exchange rate system, a monetary policy aimed at gradually reducing inflation, fiscal consolidation to ensure a decline in the path of public debt while strengthening social safety nets to protect vulnerable groups, and broad structural reforms.

The “Extended Fund Facility” is expected to encourage the availability of more funding for Egypt from its international and regional partners. Despite the promising goals of the IMF loan, however, the transition to a flexible exchange rate policy led to a significant devaluation of the Egyptian pound, which negatively affected the purchasing power of Egyptians and the high import bill. Therefore, the Egyptian government has turned to increasing support for the poorest groups.

It should be noted that China is the second largest economy in the world after the United States, according to gross domestic product, and the world’s number one trading power, as well as being one of the most important engines of global economic growth, and its currency has become one of the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights basket of currencies, starting in October 2016. China’s national income is more than 10.4 trillion dollars, compared to 17.4 trillion dollars for the United States of America. China has a purchasing power equivalent to more than 15 trillion dollars, an estimated 3.7 trillion dollars in hard currency and gold reserves, a third of which is held in US Treasury bonds. China is seeking to reduce its dependence on the dollar, after the Chinese currency covers about 10% of World Trade. Since 2015, China’s arms exports to Africa have doubled, surpassing the US share and accounting for 17% of the African market.

China and the United States are locked in an escalating trade war that has seen rounds of tariffs imposed on each other’s imports, as well as increasingly strained relations due to disagreements over issues such as arms sales and military activity in the South China Sea.

Regarding the trade balance between China and the United States, it tends in favor of Beijing, whose trade surplus exceeded $375 billion in its exchanges with Washington in 2021, noting that the volume of trade exchange between the two countries exceeded $600 billion in 2020, and US exports to China in 2021 amounted to about $116.2 billion, while China’s exports to the United States amounted to about $492 billion in the same year. The United States imports aluminum, steel, electronics, clothing, and machinery from China, while China is the largest importer of soybeans from the United States.

Second: The economic impacts of current international and regional changes on Egypt

The instability and turmoil in the monetary policy of major countries have prompted an exodus of indirect investments in emerging markets, including Egypt, where about 20 billion dollars have flowed out since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis due to interest rate hikes in developed countries, which led to a sharp drop in the exchange rates of the local currency accompanied by record inflation levels as a result of the increase in the cost of imports, but the positive economic growth achieved over the past three years, on the one hand, as well as reforms in the balance of trade, especially the balance of energy, on the other, have pushed the Egyptian economy somewhat away from the severity of the external shock, which will performed Due to high energy and food prices, which undermined economic growth.

-Opportunities – Europe’s increasing dependence on Russian energy essentially pushes European governments to increase their investment portfolio with Egypt in the field of energy, especially natural gas in the short term and electricity in the medium and long term.

-The increasing dependence over the last two decades on factories in China and Southeast Asia has prompted major companies in the world, especially European and American companies, to reconsider the distribution of their factories and production lines around the world, which makes the reforms that Egypt implemented in infrastructure an opportunity to attract the largest possible amount of these investments, as well as About the availability and sustainability of energy on the one hand, and the low cost of labor on the other hand.

Challenges:

-Slowing economic growth:

The slowdown in global economic growth may lead to a recession that includes emerging economies, which may lead to lowering expectations for economic growth. According to the expectations of international institutions, the Egyptian economy is growing at a rate of 5.6% for the current year, amid expectations of a slowdown to reach 4.6% for next year.

-Increase in the general level of prices:

The rise in the general level of prices globally led to a further rise in prices at the local level, which in turn leads to an increase in the state’s obligations towards the most vulnerable groups, and increases the size of the general budget, which requires more borrowing, as the total budget deficit reached about 6.2%. As a percentage of GDP, the following figure indicates the relative distribution of public expenditures in the current budget 2022/2023.

High external public debt:

Egypt’s external public debt reached about $145.5 billion at the end of December from the level of $137.4 billion at the end of last September, an increase of about 5.8%, which may hinder the volume of spending allocated to investments, as interest payments amounted to about 45% of total revenues and about 33%. % of total public expenditures and the equivalent of 8% of the gross domestic product for the current fiscal year. The following figure shows the development of both interest payments on the one hand and the current and total deficit on the other hand.

Challenges of foreign trade:

The effects of the slowdown in international trade appear in two directions. The first is an increase in the import bill as a result of the rise in the price of oil, and about 20 billion pounds to move the exchange rate. The second trend is a decrease in the expected returns from Suez Canal revenues, as a result of the decline in the growth rate of global trade. It is expected that trade growth will decline. The global rate will reach 4.9% in 2023 compared to the current year’s estimated 6.7%, and the rise in interest rates by 100 basis points will contribute to increasing the general budget deficit by about 28 billion pounds.

Third: Policies and procedures that the Egyptian economy can follow

Egypt should resort to a set of policies and procedures to confront international and regional changes at the local level as follows:-

1-to make more efforts to protect the production and marketing activities necessary to meet local and global demand, and that supply chains continue to operate, which means protecting the existing infrastructure for processing crops, livestock and food, and other logistics systems.

2-finding new and more diverse food suppliers, relying on the existing stocks of food commodities and diversifying local production to ensure that people get healthy dietary patterns.

3-expanding the scope of social safety nets to protect the vulnerable.many will be pushed into the cycle of poverty and hunger by the ongoing conflict, which requires the provision of appropriate and targeted social protection programs.

4-avoiding ad hoc policy responses.reducing import tariffs or using export restrictions would help to address food security challenges.

5-enhancing transparency in markets and encouraging dialogue: ensuring greater transparency and information on the state of global markets will help the government and investors to make informed decisions in light of the fluctuations in the agricultural commodity markets.

Fourth:  proposed solutions to enhance the performance of the Egyptian economy and support its ability to face external shocks:

-Increase the volume of national projects with a dollar yield and temporarily stop financing projects that need dollar spending. Sources of dollar liquidity should be diversified more quickly and focus on sources that do not require large infrastructure.
– Expanding support to the Egyptian industrial sector by paying attention to the strategy of deepening local manufacturing. It is necessary to provide alternatives to imports in the Egyptian market to reduce its vulnerability to external shocks.

-Although the devaluation of the currency makes imports more expensive, it makes exports cheaper and increases global demand for them. But the government should take steps to increase the competitiveness and quality of exports, and reduce the obstacles facing exporters as exports are a means of obtaining foreign exchange. There should be more subsidies to support small and medium-sized enterprises in order to help them produce for export.

– -Raising the interest rate by the central bank is not the only solution to curb inflation, especially since inflation is not caused by an increase in demand, but by rising costs and shocks to global supply chains. On the contrary, raising the interest rate will lead to a decline in investment, contraction of economic activity and increasing unemployment.

– -Easing the restrictions on obtaining foreign exchange, which the private sector needs to obtain the raw materials necessary for production. In addition, the private sector is now facing a high cost of financing due to the tightening of monetary policy.

-Reducing the government’s crowding out of the private sector in obtaining local credit, as the bulk of local credit is allocated to the government and the public business sector and represents about 60% of local credit

The post The Egyptian Economy in light of International and Regional Changes: Scenarios and Solutions appeared first on المنتدي الاستراتيجي للسياسات العامة و دراسات التنمية.

Since January 2011, the Egyptian economy has been subjected to many pressures and strong shocks with the devaluation of the pound and the decline of its purchasing power, which negatively affected citizens and their ability to provide their basic needs, so the state had to intervene to relieve that suffering on the shoulders of individuals, especially low-income, and this has been evident since 2014 as the political leadership sought to raise the minimum wage.

In this context, the Strategic Forum for Public Policy and Development Studies “Draya” issues a report that sheds light on the movement of the minimum wage in Egypt during the period from 2014 to 2023, and its allocations in the state’s general budget, in addition to highlighting the relationship between rising wages, inflation, purchasing power, and the obstacles that It faces the wage system and ways to overcome it, through the following axes:

First: The reality of the workforce in Egypt.

Second: The movement of the minimum wage during nine years from 2014 to 2023.

Third: The cost of increasing the minimum wage from the state’s general budget.

Fourth: The relationship between rising wages, inflation, and purchasing power.

Fifth: Obstacles facing the wage system in Egypt.

Sixth: Proposed solutions and recommendations to address these problems.

Results of the research paper:

– The labor force in the first quarter of 2023 registered about 30.6 million individuals, compared to 27.6 individuals in the same quarter of 2014, an increase of 10.9%.

– The number of employees increased and amounted to about 28.4 million individuals in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 23.9 million individuals in the same quarter in 2014, an increase of 18.8%.

– The number of unemployed decreased by 40.5%, reaching 2.2 million individuals in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 3.7 million individuals in the first quarter of 2014.

– The minimum wage of employees in the country has witnessed 7 consecutive increases since 2014 until 2023, increasing from 1200 pounds in 2014 to 4000 pounds in 2023 with an increase of 233%.

– Raising the tax exemption limit from 12 thousand pounds in 2014 to 45 thousand pounds in 2023, an increase of 275%, in order to reduce the tax burden on low-income people.

– The approval of two exceptional grants “cost of living allowance ” for the first time within one year by the decision of the president of the Republic for employees of the administrative apparatus of the state, economic bodies and the business sector, where the first grant was worth 300 pounds the first of November 2022, and the second of 300 pounds the first of October 2023 .

– The wages of private sector workers have witnessed successive increases, as the minimum wage for private sector workers increased from 2,400 pounds in January 2022, to 2,700 pounds in January 2023, then to 3,000 pounds in July 2023, and then 3,500 starting from 2024.

– Approval of an annual periodic bonus for private sector employees of at least 3% of the insurance contribution fee, with a minimum of 200 pounds, to be applied from January 2024.

– Wage allocations and compensation of employees in the state budget increased from 207.2 billion pounds in 2014 to reach 470 billion pounds in 2023 at an increase rate of about 127%.

– The increase in inflation rates significantly during the period from 2014 to 2023 represents a major challenge that may prevent the achievement of the state’s efforts to ensure a minimum level of well – being of citizens.

First: The reality of the workforce in Egypt

The labor force in the first quarter of 2023 registered about 30.6 million people, compared to 27.6 million in the same quarter of 2014, with an increase of 10.9%, as the number of employed increased and reached about 28.4 million in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 23.9 million individuals in the same quarter of 2014, with an increase of 18.8%, while the number of unemployed decreased by 40.5%, reaching 2.2 million in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 3.7 million in the first quarter of 2014, according to the latest report issued by the cabinet of ministers.

It should be noted that the unemployment rate decreased by 6.3%, where it was recorded about 7.1% in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 13.4% during the same quarter of 2014

With regard to the distribution of workers according to the most important economic activities, agricultural and fishing activity included 18.1% of the labor force, with 5.1 million workers in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 26.9%, with 6.4 million workers in the same quarter of 2014, and wholesale and retail activity employed about 14.6% of the labor force, with 4.2 million employees in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 11.3%, with 2.6 million employees, in the same quarter of 2014.

Second: Wage movement over nine years

1) Wages of workers in the state’s administrative apparatus:

The minimum wage for workers in the country witnessed 7 consecutive increases from 2014 until 2023, with the minimum wage increasing as follows:

-1,200 pounds in 2014, compared to 700 pounds in 2011, an increase of 500 pounds.
-2000 pounds in 2019, an increase of 800 pounds.
-2,400 pounds in 2021, an increase of 400 pounds.
-2700 in April 2022, an increase of 300 pounds.
-3000 in October 2022, an increase of 300 pounds.
-3,500 in March 2023, an increase of 500 pounds.
-4000 in September 2023, an increase of 500 pounds.

2)-Wages of workers in the private sector:

The wages of workers in the private sector witnessed successive increases, as the minimum wage for workers in the private sector rose from 2,400 pounds in January 2022, to 2,700 pounds in January 2023, then to 3,000 pounds in July 2023, then 3,500 starting in 2024.

This is in addition to approving an annual periodic bonus for workers in the private sector of no less than 3% of the insurance subscription wage, with a minimum of 200 pounds, as the annual periodic bonus for the year 2023 was a minimum of one hundred pounds, provided that these new decisions are implemented as of January 2024.

We point out here that workers in the private sector receive a lower minimum wage than their counterparts in the government sector, and that there are a large number of companies that have not implemented the decisions to increase the minimum wage.

Third: The cost of increasing wages from the state’s general budget:

The increase in the minimum wage is reflected in the increase in wage allocations and workers ‘ compensation (title I) of the state budget, and during the period from 2014 to 2023, the allocations of this section of the budget witnessed a huge increase year after year as follows:

The increase in the minimum wage is reflected in the increase in allocations for wages and workers’ compensation (Part One) in the state’s general budget. During the period from 2014 until 2023, the allocations for this section of the budget witnessed a tremendous increase year after year, as follows:

1) 207.2 billion pounds in the fiscal year 2014/2015, compared to 171.2 billion pounds in 2013/2014.

2) 213.7 billion pounds in the 2015/2016 fiscal year, an increase of 6 billion pounds over the previous fiscal year.

3) 225.5 billion pounds in the fiscal year 2016/2017, an increase of 12 billion pounds.

4) 240.1 billion pounds in the fiscal year 2017/2018, an increase of 15 billion pounds.

5) 266 billion and 91 million pounds in the fiscal year 2018/2019, an increase of 26 billion and 37 million pounds.

6) 288 billion and 773 million pounds in the fiscal year 2019/2020, an increase of 22 billion and 682 million pounds.

7) 318 billion and 806 million pounds in the fiscal year 2020/2021, an increase of 30 billion and 33 million pounds.

8) 358 billion and 735 million pounds in the fiscal year 2021/2022, a financial increase of 39 billion and 928 million pounds.

9) 410 billion pounds in the fiscal year 2022/2023, an increase in value amounting to 51 billion and 265 million pounds.

10) 470 billion pounds in the fiscal year 2023/2024, an increase of 60 billion pounds.

From what was previously presented, it is clear to us that the allocations for wages and workers’ compensation in the state’s general budget increased from 207.2 billion pounds in 2014 to reach 470 billion pounds in 2023, with an increase rate of about 127%.

Fourth: the relationship of wages to inflation and purchasing power

There is no doubt that the Egyptian state has made unprecedented efforts to take care of the wages of workers in the state and the private sector, but the increase in inflation rates significantly during the period from 2014 to 2023 represents a major challenge that may prevent these efforts from achieving their goals, which are centered on ensuring a minimum level of well – being of citizens.

Due to Egypt’s heavy dependence on the import of goods (especially food and fuel) from abroad-despite the decrease in imports by 40%- the prices of these goods increase with the increase in the value of the dollar, as well as the impact of the exchange rate on local goods, as the rise in prices of imported goods leads to an increase in the cost of production of local goods, which leads to a decrease in the actual living value of wages, especially with the depreciation of the pound against the dollar.

Fifth: Problems and obstacles facing the wage system in Egypt:

-There is no uniform minimum wage that includes all wage earners in Egypt
-No law has been issued regulating the minimum wage, which makes it easy to circumvent, especially with regard to workers in the private sector, and no penalty has been stipulated for those who do not adhere to applying the minimum wage.

-Private sector workers receive a lower minimum wage than their counterparts in the government sector, in addition to the lack of a binding mechanism for implementing the minimum.
-The National Wage Council does not have a mechanism for complaints about companies’ non-compliance, or immunity for workers from being subjected to retaliatory penalties for demanding the implementation of the minimum wage, or for demanding better wages in general.

Sixth: proposed solutions and recommendations:

– The need for a legislative basis for the minimum wage: this necessitates the enactment of a unified law to restructure the wages of all wage earners in Egypt, so that their wages increase commensurate with price increases at least, and review the minimum wages of workers, whether in the government sector or the private sector every six months in light of the continuous increase in prices.

– The need to take care of the wages of workers in the private sector in the state : by providing a package of compensation and transfers to maintain their purchasing power.

– The need to have a mechanism that obliges the private sector to apply the minimum wage approved by the National Council, and a complaints mechanism in case of non-compliance with the implementation of decisions.
.
– The adoption by the National Wages Council of the principle of the Living Wage instead of the minimum wage: the living wage is defined as the wage that is granted to a family breadwinner, middle-aged, with accumulated experience in his field of work. This wage should vary according to skills and degrees of education, as well as years of experience and type of work, and the living wage benefits a large number of wage earners in Egypt with experience and family owners, who receive income less than the minimum wage, so these will benefit when the minimum living wage is applied to them, which achieves proportionality between the minimum wage and inflation rates, and the adoption of the National Council for wages of the principle of living wage requires more social research to identify and codify enough to ensure the individual, family and society availability of minimum requirements for well-being living .

– The National Wages Council follows an approach based on linking the minimum wage and inflation rates: each time the value of the minimum wage is raised or determined in general, this is done by periodically measuring inflation rates and determining the requirements of monthly consumer spending for the Egyptian citizen, and based on it, the minimum wage is determined.

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Illegal immigration is a global phenomenon that exists in developed and developing countries, and represents a threat to many of them because the resulting disturbances lead to compromising the economic, social and cultural privacy of these countries, and constitute a threat to their national security and their economic, social and political interests, even if the numbers of illegal immigrants on their lands diminish.

Egypt is one of the countries suffering from this phenomenon as a source and receiving country for illegal immigrants as well as being a transit country, so the strategic forum for public policies and Development Studies “Deraya ” issues a research paper highlighting its various dimensions through the following axes:

First: The reality of illegal immigration in Egypt

Second: The economic factors driving illegal immigration

Third: The negative economic effects of illegal immigration

Fourth: Measures taken by Egypt to reduce illegal immigration

Fifth: Ways to reduce the negative economic impacts of illegal immigration

Sixth: Recommendations

The most important findings of the paper are as follows:-

– Egypt, as a country of destination, transit and departure, has been exposed to waves of illegal immigration, as a result of the increasing political instability and civil wars on the African continent, and the situation witnessed by the Arab world of revolutions and divisions.

– Egypt hosts about 9 million refugees and migrants from more than 58 different nationalities, who enjoy various basic services.

– The number of refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt reached about 259.3 thousand refugees and asylum seekers in 2020.

Pressure on public utilities, loss of jobs for citizens, loss of tax revenues are the most prominent negative consequences of illegal immigration.

– Egypt has become a successful international model in the fight against illegal migration and in supporting refugees, amid international praise for the treatment of the Egyptian state.

– The Egyptian state has taken many security and legislative measures to protect its youth from death boat trips, and job opportunities through national projects have contributed to eliminating the phenomenon of illegal migration.

First: The reality of illegal immigration in Egypt

Egypt has three communities abroad, represented by ancient migration to Europe and America and temporary migration, where the number of expatriate Egyptians residing in non-Arab countries, such as Italy, the United States of America, Canada, Australia and Greece, is estimated at three million Egyptians. Or labor migration, represented in the Gulf, where official estimates indicate that more than six million Egyptians reside in the GCC countries, and the third migration that appeared in the nineties, represented by irregular
.migration

It should be noted that about 90% of Egyptian immigrants return to Egypt after a while because their main goal is to search for a better job opportunity, and the state and international organizations play an important role in reducing the phenomenon of irregular migration because it cannot be eliminated by 100%.

The geographical location of Egypt and the political situation witnessed by a number of countries in the region have contributed to the transformation of Egypt into a transit and destination country for refugees .Egypt hosts about 9 million refugees and migrants from more than 58 different nationalities, including Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan and sub-Saharan African countries. the vast majority of them live in urban areas in Greater Cairo and Alexandria and enjoy various basic services

The previous figure shows that the number of refugees and asylum seekers in 2020 amounted to about 259.3 thousand, compared to 258.4 thousand in 2019, 246.7 thousand in 2018, 232.6 thousand in 2017, 213.5 thousand in 2016, 212.5 thousand in 2015, and 236 1 thousand in 2014, 230.1 thousand in 2013, 109.9 thousand in 2012, and 95.1 thousand in 2011.

Second: The economic factors driving illegal immigration

1- Population explosion: Population growth that exceeds the carrying capacity of the region or environment leads to population explosion. Population explosion and its consequences are considered a greater problem in developing countries.

2- Family reunification: Some illegal immigrants seek to live with relatives who live in a country they are not allowed to enter, such as a husband/wife or other family members.

3- Education: Families want to ensure a better education for their children.

4- The search for livelihood: It is one of the first and most important motives, as it leads immigrants to leave their homelands and migrate to any of the countries in which they find work opportunities to earn a living.

5-the societal transformations that most of the developing world countries are going through specifically, as these transformations carry increasing economic and social bottlenecks, escalating inflationary pressures, a low standard of living, and worsening crises in the areas of housing and utilities; Therefore, migration for work has become a necessary process

6-The high price of entry visas for some developed countries in particular. Therefore, some young people resort to the services of people called smuggling intermediaries, who facilitate the entry of migrants and their crossing of the border.

7- The lack and scarcity of labor in some countries: This is often due to the expansion of the areas of these countries and their location on a large geographical area, and in return, they suffer from a lack of population density. This causes a severe shortage of labor, which is offset by a high level of wages. These countries become a destination for any immigrant.

8-The policies and laws of the governments of countries that limit and prevent their citizens from immigrating outside their countries; This forces them to resort to illegal immigration.

Egypt has been exposed to waves of illegal immigration, as a result of the increasing state of political instability and civil wars on the African continent, and the state of revolutions and divisions witnessed in the Arab world and the increase in ethnic and sectarian armed conflicts, especially in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen on the one hand, and the deteriorating economic conditions of most of the countries of the continent African.

Third: The negative economic effects of illegal immigration

There are negative effects of illegal immigration, such as

A- Pressure on public facilities: Illegal immigrants usually use public services such as health facilities, public schools, transportation, and parks, yet they do not pay taxes to build and maintain these facilities.

b-Job loss for citizens: Illegal immigrants are usually willing to work for low wages. They take jobs reserved for locals, which can be frustrating for citizens who cannot find reasonably paying jobs.

c- Loss of tax revenue: Employing illegal immigrants means that the employer gets away without paying the necessary taxes…which can undermine government programs and harm government projects that benefit us all, and this hurts everyone so that a few benefit.

d- The escalation of criminal and terrorist activities: Most illegal immigrants are only looking for work opportunities, but there is a large number of them involved in criminal activities without proper oversight of those who enter a country illegally.

Fourth: Measures taken by Egypt to reduce illegal immigration

During 9 years, the Egyptian state took many measures that enabled it to develop an integrated system to contain illegal immigration and reduce its risks, in an effort to preserve its true wealth of young people. The government enacted some laws, tightened control over airports, ports, and Egyptian borders, and implemented giant projects that accommodate thousands of young people to reduce illegal immigration.

The state’s efforts to combat illegal immigration, in light of its keenness to adhere to international conventions, have resulted in no ship departing to transport illegal immigrants from the Egyptian coast since September 2016. Three files were worked on to combat this type of immigration as follows:

A- The first file: establishing legislative and institutional frameworks

Law No. 82 of 2016 regarding combating illegal immigration and migrant smuggling and its Executive Regulation No. 983 of 2018 came to establish deterrent penalties for this phenomenon by criminalizing all forms of migrant smuggling, which helped law enforcement agencies eliminate smuggling networks.

In April 2022, the President of the Republic issued Law No. 2 of 2022 amending some provisions of the Law on Combating Illegal Immigration and Migrant Smuggling promulgated by Law No. 82 of 2016 in order to combat this phenomenon. The penalty was increased to become aggravated imprisonment for a period of not less than five years and a fine of not less than Five hundred thousand pounds and not more than one million pounds.

The National Strategy to Combat Illegal Immigration (2016/2026) was also launched, which targets the groups most at risk of exploitation by smugglers, namely young people (18-35 years old), children and their families, and those arriving to Egypt illegally. It also seeks to deter and punish immigration brokers and traders through… Strict procedures and penalties.

The government also established a number of bodies concerned with managing the illegal immigration file, the most important of which is the Ministry of State for Immigration and Affairs of Egyptians Abroad, which was created in 2015.

B-The second file: the security

There were infiltration operations taking place across the eastern borders and the western and southern borders, but they stopped thanks to the efforts of the Ministry of Interior and the Armed Forces in securing the borders very well. Attempts at illegal immigration of Egyptians and foreigners across the land and sea borders, especially those overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, were thwarted, and immigration brokers were besieged. Illegal workers, who facilitate the crossing of Africans and use Egypt as a transit country.

C- The third file: development efforts

Launching the “Decent Life” initiative to develop the Egyptian countryside to raise the quality of life for citizens in villages that source illegal immigration, as it contributed significantly to eliminating the causes of illegal immigration, by achieving comprehensive community development, as a budget worth one trillion pounds was allocated to the initiative.

2-Developing places and hotspots for illegal immigration, including Kafr El-Sheikh Governorate. The political leadership opened the industrial fish city project in Ghalioun, Kafr El-Sheikh, as the project provides thousands of direct and indirect job opportunities for fishermen and university graduates from the people of Kafr El-Sheikh and its neighboring governorates.

3- Facilitating all marketing procedures for the Small and Micro Enterprise Financing Initiative for Youth, and allocating an amount of 200 billion pounds for its implementation, especially in geographical areas where illegal immigration is widespread.

4- The Ministry of Immigration implemented the presidential initiative “Survival Boats,” which was launched by the President of the Republic as part of the recommendations of the third edition of the World Youth Forum in December 2019. The initiative contributed to raising awareness and training the most targeted groups to introduce them to the dangers of illegal immigration and its safe alternatives, according to a plan drawn up to include 14 governorates. It is one of the governorates most prone to illegal immigration.

Fifth: Ways to reduce the negative economic impacts of illegal immigration

The fight against illegal migration will not only come through awareness-raising processes, but also through the adoption by countries of some measures that contribute to changing the thinking of young people by:

– Increase and support national investment to be able to increase new job opportunities for young people who can completely stop thinking about immigration.

– Improving the health reality by paying attention to the health sector from hospitals and securing trained medical staff, modern devices and all kinds of medicines, and this can limit the migration caused by diseases and epidemics.

– The demand of governments to build housing associations for young people and sell them at affordable prices so that they can get married and start a family, and then stop thinking about immigration.

-Countries monitor their land and sea borders well, and set up military and security barriers in open border areas or on secret passages and crossings taken by people smugglers.

– Taking strict legal measures and deterrent penalties against every illegal immigrant who is arrested, so that the rest of the young people who want to do this type of immigration know their fate.

– The governments of the countries of immigration to spread awareness among their citizens and ask them to help their governments by refraining from hiring any person from outside the country who does not have a legal entry visa and immediately inform the authorities of the country about it.

– Allowing citizens to engage in the political situation and express their opinions without intimidation or intimidation.

-Providing suitable jobs and jobs for young graduates with wages commensurate with their fatigue, qualifications and the living situation of the country.

– Consolidate the idea of the motherland and strengthen their attachment to it, and provide intellectual, material and psychological comfort to increase and strengthen this attachment and refuse to abandon it and emigrate from it.

– Achieving the principle of equal opportunities, justice, equality and job descriptions, and providing the simplest rights and privileges for young people to support, assist and encourage them to work effectively, such as providing transportation, health insurance, appropriate wages, comfortable and healthy work environment, and others.

Sixth: recommendations

The Egyptian state has succeeded in managing the illegal immigration file and addressing this dangerous phenomenon over the past nine years, perhaps the most important of which are the following:

– Strengthening the spirit of belonging among young people, instilling the value of patriotism, motivating them to participate in political life

– Employing the religious dimension to raise awareness of the dangers of migration, and activating the role of religious institutions.

– Activating and increasing the role of civil society organizations in addressing the phenomenon of illegal migration, through direct contact with Target groups in the most exporting governorates of illegal migration, and clarifying the risks and alternatives.

– Increase investment in education in the provinces that are the source of illegal immigration, and pay attention to high-quality technical education.

– Highlighting the consequences of illegal immigration through educational courses and programs in schools and universities.

– The direction and support of production projects because they absorb a lot of manpower, and this is next to the giant national projects that Egypt is implementing now.

– Encouraging the private sector to support activities to combat illegal migration.

– Intensification of the media processing of the illegal immigration file.

– Investing and strengthening international and regional cooperation in the field of combating illegal migration

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The Egyptian state attaches great importance to citizenship and social peace, upholding the values ​​of law and belonging, and empowering women with all their rights without discrimination. The state was also able to erase the effects of the era of real development and reform, in line with the challenges of the current stage, and moving towards broader horizons. These efforts received a positive outlook from international institutions and succeeded in strengthening Egypt’s leadership regionally and internationally.

 In this context, the strategic forum for public policies and Development Studies issues a research paper highlighting the economic empowerment in Egypt and its impact on improving the standard of living through the following axes:

First: analysis of economic empowerment indicators

Second: examples of economic empowerment programs

Third: the impact of economic empowerment in improving the standard of living

The paper reached the following main results:

-Egypt ranked first in the Investment Attractiveness Index in Africa, and advanced 8 places in the economic openness index, which measures opportunities for openness to trade, investment, entrepreneurship and governance

-Egypt advanced 6 places in the infrastructure and market access index, and also ranked 87th in the Sustainable Development Index 2022

-Egypt has advanced 11 centers in the Human Development Index, as well as 15 centers in the Global Youth Development Index, which depends on several sub-pillars, including education, health, employment and opportunities available to youth

-Egypt advanced 3 places in the quality of Life Index, where it ranked 54th in 2022, and advanced 7 places in the overall quality of Life Index for expatriates, where it ranked 47^th

-Egypt ranked 78th in 2022 in the Economic Empowerment Index, where it advanced 56 places, compared to the 134th place in 2014

-Poverty rates in Egypt have decreased to 29.7% in 2019/2020 compared to 32.5% in 2017/2018 with a decrease of 2.8%

-Economic empowerment has resulted in an increase in the ability of families to spend on the educational process, a decrease in dropout rates from education, as well as a decrease in the proportion of children under the age of five with dwarfism from 21% in 2014 to 13% in 2021.

First: Analysis of economic empowerment indicators Egypt advanced 5 places in the Investment Attractiveness Index in Africa issued by (RMB), which measures possible opportunities and risks for investors, as it ranked first in 2021 compared to 6th place in 2014, while it advanced two places in the Index of Foreign Direct Investments in Africa issued by (UNCTAD), which It measures global flows of foreign direct investment in billion dollars, as it came in second place in 2021 compared to fourth place in 2014. Egypt’s credit rating has improved, which reflects the country’s ability to fulfill its obligations when they fall due, as Fitch agency fixed Egypt’s credit rating at (B+) with a stable outlook in April 2022 compared to (B) with a stable outlook in December 2014. Standard & Poor’s also rated Egypt at (B) with a stable outlook in April 2022, compared to (-B) with a stable outlook in November 2014.

Egypt also advanced 8 places in the economic openness index issued by the Legatum Institute, which measures opportunities for openness to trade, investment, entrepreneurship and governance, as it ranked 102 in 2021 compared to 110 in 2014, while it advanced 57 places in the business environment index issued by The World Economic Forum, which relies on several pillars, including property rights and the extent of the impact of laws and legislation on the business and investment environment, ranked 38th in 2021, compared to 95th in 2015.

Egypt advanced 17 places in the IESE countries attractiveness index for capital and private property rights, which measures the attractiveness and quality of the investment environment and the ease of performing economic transactions, ranking 53rd in 2021 compared to 70th in 2016.

This is in addition to Egypt’s progress of 6 positions in the infrastructure and market access index issued by the ( Legatum Institute), which measures the quality of infrastructure that enables the flow of trade to and from international partners, to come to the 85th place in 2021 compared to the 91st place in 2019, noting that Egypt is one of the top 10 countries achieved an improvement in the index compared to 2011.

In addition to the above, Egypt advanced 26 positions in the competitiveness index issued by the World Economic Forum, which measures the competitiveness of countries through institutions, policies and factors that determine the level of productivity, where it ranked 93rd in 2019, compared to 119th in 2014, while Egypt’s points in the Budget Transparency Index issued by Budget partnership International improved to score 43 points in 2021 compared to 16 points in 2015, where the assessment covers all stages of the budget, whether drafting, approval, implementation, control.

Egypt ranked 87th in the Sustainable Development Index 2022 issued by the Sustainable Development Solution Network as a result of the improvement in the score, which evaluates the progress made each year regarding achieving the sustainable development goals, to obtain 68.7 points in 2022 compared to 66.8 points in 2014.

Egypt’s score also improved in the index of policies supporting the entrepreneurship environment issued by GEM, which measures the extent of encouragement and support directed at startup companies, as it obtained 4.6 points in 2021, compared to 3.3 points in 2015.

Egypt also advanced 100 places in the Road Quality Index issued by the World Economic Forum, which measures the efficiency, safety and breadth of roads, to occupy 18th place in 2021, compared to 118th place in 2015, in addition to progressing  11 places in the Train Services Efficiency Index issued by the World Economic Forum, which It measures speed, prices, punctuality, and availability of trains, as it ranked 34th in 2021, compared to 45th in 2019.

Among the strengths achieved is the decline of Egypt by 5.4 percentage points in the proportion of slum dwellers out of the total urban population, according to the World Bank, where it recorded 5.2% in 2018, compared to 10.6% in 2014, in addition to Egypt occupying the 13th place at the level of the best countries that have achieved an improvement in the points of the sanitation and drinking water index over ten years with a total of 9.3 points, noting that the indicator issued by Environmental Performance Index measures the extent of protection provided to human health against environmental hazards unsafe and unsafe sanitation.

As for the most prominent indicators of digital transformation, Egypt advanced 14 places in the Network Readiness Index issued by the Portulans Institute, which is based on digital readiness for 4 main pillars: technology – people – governance – impact on the economy and sustainable development, to come in 77th place in 2021 compared to the previous position. 91 in 2014.

Egypt advanced 46 places in the Government Readiness for Artificial Intelligence Index issued by Oxford Insights, which measures the extent of readiness to apply artificial intelligence in providing public services to citizens, as Egypt ranked 65th in 2021, compared to 111th in 2019.  Digital transformation indicators also include Egypt achieving 103rd place globally in the e-Government Development Index in 2022 after improving in total points, as the index issued by the United Nations measures the availability of digital services, remote communication, and human capacity development, to record 0.5895 points in 2022 compared to 0.5129 in 2014.

Egypt has also advanced two positions in the Digital Inclusion Index issued by Ronald Berger, which measures the extent of universal and equal access to technology and its use for all, to occupy the 50th place in 2021 compared to the 52nd place in 2017, as well as Egypt occupies the 23rd place globally in the Cybersecurity Index 2021 after improving by a total of points, where it scored 95.5 points in 2021, compared to 58.8 points in 2014, noting that the index issued by ITU assesses areas of improvement and increasing awareness of cyber risks and threats and confront her.

Regarding the most prominent indicators of the energy sector, Egypt advanced 5 places in the Effective Energy Transition Index issued by the World Economic Forum, which evaluates the performance of the energy sector through the ability to support economic growth and comprehensive access to safe and reliable energy supplies based on environmental sustainability goals, to come in 76th place. In 2021, compared to 81st place in 2018, Egypt also advanced 31 places in the World Energy Index, to occupy 54th place in 2021, compared to 85th place in 2014. The tripartite energy index issued by the World Energy Council is based on (security, justice, distribution Energy sustainability.

Regarding the most prominent environmental sector indicators, Egypt advanced 5 places in the climate change index, issued by Germanwatch, which is based on a review of the country’s policies and efforts to protect the climate, to occupy 21st place in 2022, compared to 26th place in 2014, while Egypt advanced 5 places in the ranking. Global Gas Production, issued by (BP), which is based on gas production in billion cubic metres, where Egypt ranked 13th in 2021, compared to 18th in 2014.

Egypt also advanced 91 places in the Human Development Index within the World Human Development Report for the year 2021-2022, which was launched by the United Nations Development Programme, UNDP, compared to 108th place in 2014, which is a measure of the average achievement made in the main dimensions of human development such as healthy living, a decent standard of living, and knowledge. Egypt moved from the category of countries with medium human development to the list of countries with high human development.

As for education and scientific research indicators among the most prominent indicators of human development and human building, Egypt advanced 19 places in the higher education index issued by the UNDP, which relies on several sub-pillars, including spending on education and the quality of universities, where it occupied the 35th place in 2021, compared to the 54th place in 2017.

With regard to the index of the ability of the educational system to meet the needs issued by the World Economic Forum, Egypt has advanced 41 positions, where it occupied the 67th place in 2021, compared to the 108th place in 2019, noting that the index measures the extent of the educational system’s contribution to creating a strong and competitive economy, in addition to Egypt’s progress in the Global Knowledge Index issued by the UNDP reached 42 positions, where it occupied the 53rd place in 2021, compared to the 95th place in 2017, and Egypt is the most advanced country in the world sectoral ones include pre-university education, technical education, vocational training, higher education, research Development and innovation.

Second: Examples of economic empowerment programs in Egypt

 Economic empowerment programs seek to provide assistance to the poor to start their own projects rather than providing permanent social care. These programs may also be governmental or by internal, external, and international non-profit civil society organizations. At the same time, economic empowerment programs help reduce poverty rates, by creating job opportunities for many families, and this effect is of great importance, as poverty leads to malnutrition, inability to receive health care, homelessness, begging, etc.

 Egypt’s experience is a pioneer in empowering the poor in rural areas and unleashing the potential of women in rural communities, especially since Egypt currently has a social protection network that includes 5.2 million families, about 22 million people, a percentage of almost 80% in the countryside and the illiteracy rate among them is 62%, which requires innovative methods of economic empowerment.

The state gave priority to integrating economic empowerment with food systems, and making the poor produce to meet their needs, and local and international cooperatives were established to serve this goal.

Among the initiatives that have been implemented in Egypt is the launch of the Opportunity Program to create 50,000 self- and third-party job opportunities with a budget of 50 million dollars, of which 35,000 projects are being implemented in cooperation with 18 civil society organizations in eight governorates, and President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s initiative to provide high-production livestock breeds for small farmers. To combat the decline in the productivity of local farm animals, with a budget of 150 million Egyptian pounds for small farmers, in cooperation with the Ministry of Endowments, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Agricultural Development Bank, work began in April 2022.

There is also an initiative to provide high-production sheep and goat breeding for families in the border governorates, to cover the food needs of the population and their economic activities, which benefited 2,400 families in four governorates and 6,000 projects are being completed, all in the fields of animal production, providing each family with 2 to 4 sheep or goats as the main capital.

The government also places the issue of women’s economic empowerment at the top of the development plan for the year 22/23, where the national strategy for the empowerment of Egyptian women 2030 includes four main pillars, namely political, economic and social empowerment, and protection from all forms of violence against women.

In her plan document submitted to the House of Representatives and approved by the parliament, she stressed the importance of developing women’s capabilities to expand their professional opportunities, increase their participation in the workforce and achieve equal opportunities in terms of women’s employment in all sectors.

The National Council for Women also prepared the Egyptian Women’s Guide to Entrepreneurship, with the aim of enhancing the economic empowerment of Egyptian women. The guide aims to build the capabilities of women who want to start a project to help them generate income, in addition to helping women who already have a project and want to expand it, or who face problems in implementing it, by providing advice and guidance.

The “Women and Work” project, “Do Good” and “One Village, One Product” were implemented as programs to enhance women’s economic empowerment through information technology. The “Adha and Adud” initiative was also launched to empower women who own handicrafts with an authentic Egyptian character and work to develop it. And promote it. The “Egyptian Cotton from Planting to Harvest” initiative was launched to train women in improved harvesting to increase cotton productivity.

Third: The impact of economic empowerment on improving the standard of living

Egypt advanced 3 places in the quality of Life Index, where it ranked 54th in 2022, compared to 57th place in 2016, noting that the index issued by US News depends on several pillars, including access to food, housing, education and adequate employment for citizens.

Egypt advanced 7 places in the general quality of life index for expatriates, occupying 47th place in 2022, compared to 54th place in 2014. The index issued by InterNations relies on several sub-pillars, including well-being, health, safety and climate. Egypt also advanced 4 places in the index of the best countries in the world issued by US News, which relies on sub-pillars including cultural influence, trade openness, entrepreneurship, and quality of life, ranked 35th in 2022, compared to 39th in 2016.

It also advanced 17 places in the Best Destination for Expatriates index issued by InterNations, which measures the ease of residence for expatriates, as it ranked 35th in 2022, compared to 52nd in 2014.

As for indicators of citizenship, coexistence, and equality, Egypt’s score improved in the Community Peace Index issued by the Institute for Economics and Peace, which is based on sub-pillars related to indicators of violence, terrorism, and crime, as it obtained 2.5 points in 2022 compared to 3 points in 2014, noting that the lower The more points the better.

it also advanced 56 positions in the women’s Political Empowerment Index, where she ranked 78th in 2022, compared to the 134th position in 2014, as the index issued by the World Economic Forum measures the extent of gender parity in political empowerment opportunities, in addition to her progress of 22 positions in the Gender Inequality Index, where she occupied the 109th position in 2021, compared to the 131st position in 2014. In addition to being removed from the list of countries of concern for the sixth year in a row, according to the report of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, thanks to the country’s adoption of the principles of religious tolerance, noting that Egypt was classified in 2014 on the list of countries of concern with regard to the file of religious freedom.

the most prominent indicators related to the tourism and antiquities sectors, Egypt has advanced 32 positions in the tourism and travel Development Index issued by the World Economic Forum, which measures a range of factors and policies that enable sustainable and flexible development in the field of Tourism and travel, where it occupied the 51st position in 2021, compared to the 83rd position in 2015, and advanced 38 positions in the index of safer countries, where it occupied the 65th position in 2021, compared to the 103rd position in 2019.

Finally, Egypt won the second place as the best diving destination in the world for 2021, according to Dive Magazine, and was also selected among the top 10 tourist destinations to visit in 2022, according to the Lonely Planet Travel Guide, as well as being selected among the top five tourist destinations on the African continent according to the Financial Times Magazine. This comes in addition to choosing Egypt among the best tourist destinations to travel to in the fall of 2022, according to CNN Travel Report, as well as being selected as one of the best tourist destinations in the world for 2022, according to Tripadvisor.

According to the Human Development Report for the year 2021/2022, poverty rates in Egypt witnessed a decline to 29.7% in (2019/2020) compared to 32.5% in (2017/2018), a decrease of 2.8%, as poverty in the governorates of Upper Egypt decreased from 52% to 48% during the same period, according to data from the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics on poverty statistics in Egypt. The following figure shows the increase in average annual family income in Egypt:

In conclusion, it is clear from the above the efforts made by the Egyptian state to support economic empowerment programs and provide the necessary funding for them, because of the positive effects of these programs on the economic and social reality, which is confirmed by the returns at all levels through the high level of economic and social indicators in the country.

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BRICS is an abbreviation of the first letters in the English language of the countries that make up the organization, which are: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The group represents about 30% of the size of the global economy, 26% of the world’s area and 43% of the world’s population, and produces more than a third of grain production In the world. Member states have established the New Development Bank (NDB) with a capital of $100 billion to finance infrastructure and sustainable development projects in member states, as well as emerging market economies and other developing countries.

Interest in the BRICS bloc increased following the Russian-Ukrainian war and the accompanying restructuring of a new world order heading towards multipolarity, as several countries seek to join this bloc out of a desire to benefit from the economic and political advantages it offers, and to achieve a state of balance in the global economy.

After the “BRICS” group announced its invitation to Egypt to join its membership starting in January 2024, several questions emerged regarding the expected gains and the nature of the opportunities and challenges that the Egyptian state may face after joining, which is what this research paper answers in an analytical manner through several axes that come as follows: :

First: The economic importance of the BRICS bloc

Second: Egypt’s economic relations with the BRICS bloc countries

Third: The impact of Egypt’s accession to the BRICS bloc (opportunities and challenges)

Fourth: Estimating the gains of the new bloc

The most important findings of the paper are as follows:

-The total GDP of the BRICS member states will be about USD 25.9 trillion in 2022

-The BRICS group controls 17% of World Trade, and its current countries control 27% of the world’s land area, equivalent to about 42% of the total population of the Earth.

-Egypt’s exports to the BRICS countries increased by 5.3% to reach 4.9 billion dollars in 2022.

-The investments of the BRICS countries in Egypt amounted to 891.2 million dollars during the fiscal year 2021/2022.

-The size of the economy of the “BRICS ” group will become about 29 trillion dollars after the accession of the six new countries, representing about 29% of the size of the world economy

First: The economic importance of the BRICS bloc

The BRICS has become one of the most important economic blocs in the world today, due to the economic weight of its countries in light of its human, industrial and agricultural potential, which makes its decisions the focus of global attention and influence, as follows:

1-share of global gross product: the total GDP of the BRICS member countries is about 25.9 trillion dollars during 2022, which is 25.6% of the global GDP of about 101 trillion dollars in 2022, and it is also one of the countries that witnessed rapid economic growth rates, making it one of the largest global economies, such as China, the second largest economy in the world after the United States of America.

2- Contribution to global trade: The BRICS countries control 17% of the volume of global trade, according to World Trade Organization data. Looking at the global trade weight of the BRICS bloc in 2022, it was found that China leads the world with an export share of about 15% of total global exports, and comes in second place in terms of imports with a global share of more than 11%. Russia – second in the world in fuel exports – is ranked 15th globally in terms of exports, while India ranks 21st globally in terms of exports and 17th globally in terms of imports.

3- Human capital: The BRICS countries own about 40.9% of the world’s total population, with a total of 3.25 billion people out of a global total of about 7.95 billion people in 2022, making it a huge global market in terms of labor force, production, as well as distribution and consumption.

4- Diversity of the production structure: The commodity structure of BRICS exports in 2022 is characterized by diversity. Which gives these countries great opportunities for intra-trade and the integration of supply and production chains between them. For example: Russia has a huge production power of oil, natural gas, grains, fertilizers, nickel and its products, while China is distinguished by the diversity of its non-oil industrial production structure and leads the world in exporting many heavy industrial products. . South Africa is also distinguished by the manufacture and extraction of minerals and precious stones, especially pearls.

Second: Egypt’s economic relations with the BRICS countries

The BRICS countries have great economic relations with Egypt, where the volume of trade exchange between Egypt and the group in 2022 is as follows

– Egypt’s exports to the countries of the “BRICS ” group increased by 5.3% to reach 4.9 billion dollars compared to 4.6 billion dollars.

– The value of trade exchange between the two parties reached 31.2 billion dollars in 2022, an annual increase of 10.5% from 28.30 billion dollars, according to data from the central agency for public mobilization and statistics.

– Egyptian imports from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa amounted to 26.4 billion dollars last year, an increase of 11.5% from 23.6 billion dollars in 2021.

– The Indian market was the first destination for Egyptian goods within the group in 2022 with a value of 1.9 billion dollars, followed by China with a value of 1.8 billion dollars, and Russia with a value of 595.1 million dollars

The BRICS countries began investing in Egypt over the past years, reaching $891.2 million during the fiscal year 2021/2022, an increase from the previous year, which amounted to $610.9 million, thus increasing by about 45.90%, and China came in first place with $369.4 million. Followed by India with $266.1 million, and South Africa with $220.3 million.

The number of companies established by the group’s countries in Egypt has reached 2,318, with a capital value of approximately two billion dollars, operating in several vital economic sectors, including the industry, services, construction, communications, and technology sectors.

China is at the forefront of the BRICS countries in terms of the volume of investments, as the number of companies established with the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones of the State of China is 1,345, and the contribution of these companies to the issued capital reaches 792.53 million dollars. China’s ranking on the list of foreign countries investing in Egypt is ranked 21st.

The Russian Federation ranks second among the BRICS countries investing in Egypt, as the number of companies founded by investors from Russia reaches 423, and the contribution of these companies to the issued capital reaches $124.97 million. The Russian Federation is ranked 47th among countries investing in Egypt.

There are strong partnership relations with Russia that have extended for more than 79 years of political, economic, military and diplomatic cooperation.the volume of trade exchange during 2021 amounted to about 4.7 billion dollars compared to 4.5 billion dollars in 2020, and Egyptian exports to Russia increased during 2021 to about 591.7 million dollars compared to about 515.6 million dollars in 2020.

Egypt is Russia’s first trading partner in Africa, with a ratio equivalent to 83% of the volume of trade between Russia and Africa, and Egypt obtains 33% of the volume of trade exchange between Russia and the Arab countries.

India: The number of companies established is 462, and the contribution of these companies to the issued capital is 751.64 million dollars. India’s ranking comes in 32nd place among countries investing in Egypt.

Brazil: The number of companies established at the Investment Authority is 28, and the contribution of these companies to the issued capital is $36.47 million, and Brazil is ranked 61st among the countries investing in Egypt.

South Africa: The number of companies establishing the State of South Africa in Egypt is 60, and the contribution of these companies to the issued capital is $292.16 million, and South Africa is ranked 64th among the countries investing in Egypt.

Third: the impact of Egypt’s accession to the BRICS bloc

The member states of the group play an increasing role in influencing the global economy, and thus the formation of a new multipolar economic strategy represents an opportunity to help the Egyptian economy. This is why Egypt’s joining the group represents a diversification of options for Cairo and a reduction in its exposure to any form of economic pressure. We review the opportunities and challenges related to Egypt’s joining the bloc as follows:

– Opportunities

1-the decision of Egypt to join the BRICS group directly contributes to benefiting from the experiences of participating countries in increasing manufacturing and production rates, as the agreement establishing the BRICS Development Bank allows Egypt to strengthen the trade exchange agreement with 68 BRICS countries, thus providing a common market for the promotion of Egyptian goods and products, next to the Comesa grouping, which supports the continuation of the strategic vision on a new diversification of international trade relations.

2-this bloc gives the member states a kind of balance and rapid trade exchange to revive their economies, as well as the formation of reserves to address the liquidity problem, and how to face global crises through the economies of the member states, which are considered the most and fastest growing in the world.

3- -reducing the demand for the dollar: the “BRICS” countries are working on the formation of alternative payment systems and the creation of a common digital currency and a reserve currency for World Trade, which is likely to be backed by gold; as they are working on the gradual development of a financial system away from the US dollar, and expanding the use of local currencies in trade exchange, in a way that achieves win-win cooperation.

4-Egypt’s accession will strengthen its important and influential role in Africa, through trade agreements between them, and it will be able to benefit from trade agreements such as the common market of the South (Mercosur), to become a center connecting Africa, Asia and South America.

5-expectations indicate more intra-regional investments and the placement of countries such as India, for example, on the Egyptian investment map. The Egyptian economy is looking forward to attracting investments in the fields of digitization, renewable energy, agricultural development, green environmental investments and infrastructure.

6- securing strategic goods: the BRICS countries produce a third of the world’s grain production, and Egypt, Russia and India have previously held discussions regarding the trading of wheat and rice, along with other strategic goods in the Egyptian pound, ruble and rupee.

7-settlement of payments resulting from intra-trade between Egypt and the countries of the group using their currencies without the need for dollars, euros or yen.

8-stressing that Egypt has become an independent political decision seeking to establish balanced relations with all parties.

B. challenges:

There are a number of challenges facing the bloc, both internal related to the extent of compatibility between the member states and the nature of their handling of key files and issues, and even bilateral relations between different countries within them, as well as external challenges related to the developments witnessed in the world and the range of current or upcoming wide variables.
There are also challenges associated with agreeing on future collective economic formulas

It is too early to agree on a single currency, but the ambition is currently related to exchanges in local currencies, reducing dependence on the dollar and transaction costs, and there is a state of freedom in trade exchanges without relying on the US currency .

Fourth: Estimating the gains of the new bloc

Three countries (Russia, China, and India) with international economic, political, and military weight are all seeking to play a greater role in the international arena and it seems obvious that they know-and even benefit-from American mistakes by making partnerships different from what the United States is doing. In light of these data and the political-military attraction sometimes between these giant economic powers and between America and Western countries, the dominance of the dollar will decline, but this will take some time.

Another important issue is the ability of the BRICS group to move forward towards more orderly, fairer and more established economic relations between the countries of the group. The following gains can be tentatively estimated:

1-after the size of the economy of the “BRICS” group was about 26 trillion dollars, representing about 6 percent of the global economy in 2022, after the accession of the six new countries will become about 29 trillion dollars, representing about 29% of the global economy.

2-with the increase of the number of BRICS countries to 11, the population of the BRICS countries will become more than three billion and 670 million people, which is almost half of the world’s population, while this percentage was at about 40% before the accession of these countries.

3-with the accession of both Saudi Arabia and the UAE to the “BRICS” bloc, there are oil forces with high production capacity, given the daily production volume of 10 million barrels of oil for both Russia and Saudi Arabia, and about three million barrels for the UAE, and in the presence of China within the bloc and as the largest importer in the world.

In conclusion, it can be said that there is a state of optimism in the language of numbers, the percentage of the contribution of the “BRICS” group reached 31.5% in the world economy, compared to 30.7% for the Seven industrial powers. The group seeks to reflect this superiority in practice by expanding its economic activities aimed at countering the dominance of the US dollar. The BRICS group controls 17% of World Trade, and its current countries control 27% of the world’s land area, equivalent to about 42% of the total population of the Earth, while the population of the group of seven countries is about 800 million people, but the bloc’s policy so far does not take the paths of conflict, all BRICS members are talking only about increasing the use of local currencies in intra-trade and the establishment of a common payment system, taking the Russian-Ukrainian crisis as an opportunity to achieve this goal.

Despite the optimism related to the success of the BRICS bloc in shaking the throne of the dollar, the de facto policy reduces this optimism, because reality strongly confirms that breaking the dominance of the US dollar in the global financial system is extremely difficult, as the dollar represents the most widespread reserve currency in the world at 61%, it is the main currency in World Trade and in the global stock markets, in the commodity markets, bank deposits, development finance and borrowing.

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The war led to a decrease in Ukraine’s grain exports to about 23.6 million tons in the 2022-2023 season from 33.5 million tons in the 2021-2022 season, rising food commodity prices around the world, inflation rates and worsening hunger around the world, where about 345 million people suffer from acute food insecurity, which is more than double the number recorded in 2019, according to estimates by the UN World Food Program.

The Strategic Forum for Public Policies and Development Studies “draya” issues a research paper aimed at analyzing the causes and repercussions of the food crisis, presenting the state of food security and nutrition globally and in the Arab world, then dealing with the efforts of international organizations to confront this crisis, and finally reviewing the efforts of the Egyptian state to address it:

1-domestic food price inflation is still high in most low -, middle-and high-income countries, where the inflation rate exceeded 5% in 70.6% of low-income countries, 81.4% of the lower middle-income countries, and 84% of the upper middle-income countries.

2-about 80.4% of high-income countries suffer from high food price inflation.

3-food price inflation in the Middle East and North Africa this year will slow growth to 3%, compared to 5.8% last year.

4-inflation accounts for between 24% to 33% of the food insecurity expected in 2023.

5-some 258 million people in 58 countries or territories faced severe food insecurity in 2022, up from 193 million people in 53 countries and territories in 2021.

6-about 53.9 million people suffered from severe food insecurity in the Arab region in 2021, an increase of 55% since 2010, and an increase of 5 million from the previous year.

7-more than half of the population of the Arab countries, i.e. 162.7 million people, could not afford to adopt a healthy diet in 2020.

The Egyptian state seeks to confront the food crisis by exerting more efforts through the following:

1-reclamation of more agricultural lands, as the area of cultivated lands in Egypt increased by about 9% to reach 9.7 million acres in 2021, and it is targeted to increase the area of the agricultural patch to about 3.3 million acres by 2030, to reach the total area of the agricultural patch to 13 million acres.

2- Expanding the activity of the stock exchange for commodities, and trading wheat on the stock exchange for the first time, which contributed to controlling and stabilizing prices in the local market, in light of the decrease in the price of a ton of flour extracted by 72% to 13.5 thousand pounds instead of 15 thousand pounds, and the decrease in the price of bran by 2000 pounds per ton.

3- Signing a $40 million grant agreement from the European Union, implemented by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, to enhance food security efforts in Egypt.

4- Implementation of the “European Union support for food security in Egypt” program funded by a grant of 100 million euros. The current development cooperation portfolio between Egypt and the European Union has amounted to about 3 billion euros.

5- Providing maximum support to the agricultural sector and farmers, and continuing to develop the contractual farming system to encourage the expansion of the cultivation of strategic crops, in addition to efforts to develop Egyptian breeds of livestock to enhance their production.

First: Analyzing the causes and repercussions of the food crisis

According to the latest update on the state of food security in the world on the World Bank website on June 1, 2023, domestic food price inflation is still high in most low-, middle- and high-income countries, as information for the period between January 2023 and April 2023 shows an inflation rate of more than 5% In 70.6% of low-income countries, 81.4% of the lower bracket of middle-income countries, and 84% of the upper bracket of middle-income countries, in addition to the suffering of about 80.4% of high-income countries from high food price inflation.

According to the report, the countries most affected by the rise in food prices are located in: Africa, Latin America, South Asia, and Europe, as shown in the following figure:

Figure No. (1) Food price inflation map

Source: IMF, Havre analytics, trade economics

The World Bank stated in a report entitled “When Destinies Change: The Long-Term Effects of High Prices and Food Insecurity in the Middle East and North Africa Region” issued in April 2023, that food price inflation in the region this year will lead to a slowdown in growth to 3%, compared to 5.8%. , last year. The bank thus lowered its growth forecasts for the region, after its previous estimates, published in October 2022, that the growth rate reached 3.5% in 2023.

The report of the food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) indicates that its food price index reached 143.7 points in 2022, an increase of 14.3% over 2021, the highest level since records began in 1990. The global food crisis has worsened for several reasons, including the increasing number of restrictions on food trade imposed by countries in order to increase domestic supplies and reduce prices, where 22 countries applied 28 bans on the export of food until March 13, 2023, and 10 countries applied 14 measures to limit exports.

A Moody’s report also indicated that global food prices have declined from their record levels recorded in March 2022, following the Ukrainian-Russian war, but it is likely that prices will remain at high levels throughout the current year. Moody’s identified the factors that lead to higher food prices, most notably the ongoing risks to crop production in Ukraine, the problems faced by the Black Sea initiative to transfer grain from Ukraine to the world, in addition to the scarcity of global supplies and climatic fluctuations.

It should be noted here that the prices of wheat and corn have declined in the recent period due to allowing Ukraine’s agricultural exports to resume within the Black Sea Initiative, which allowed the flow of Ukrainian agricultural exports, which contributed to a decline in crop prices by 10-15% from their record levels with the onset of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks 2023 Report, the food crisis – along with the energy crisis – risks undermining efforts to address long-term risks, particularly those related to climate change, biodiversity and investment in human capital, and this crisis is expected to continue Over the next two years, the risks of a recession, mounting debt distress, and an ongoing cost-of-living crisis are increasing, driving a hole in climate action, and potentially triggering a geo-economic war.

The 2023 Risk Report indicates that failure to cooperate more effectively in mitigating and adapting to climate change would lead over the next ten years to continued global warming, an increase in natural disasters, loss of biodiversity and environmental degradation in general.

Second: the state of food security and nutrition

The global report on food crises 2023, published on the FAO website and released on 3 May 2023, indicates that 258 million people in 58 countries or territories faced acute food insecurity at crisis or worse levels in 2022, up from 193 million people in 53 countries and territories in 2021. This figure is the highest in the history of the report, which was first released seven years ago.

The report added that individuals in 7 countries (Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Haiti, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen) have faced catastrophic levels of food insecurity, which indicates the risk of famine and very dangerous levels of malnutrition in several regions of these countries. . Acute food insecurity occurs when a person is unable to consume enough food, which would put their life or livelihood at grave risk.

The “Regional Overview of the State of Food Security and Nutrition 2022” issued by the Food and Agriculture Organization and the International Fund for Agricultural Development confirms that hunger and malnutrition have reached critical levels in the Arab region, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic and war in Ukraine has access to basic foods.

The report reveals that an estimated 53.9 million people experienced severe food insecurity in the Arab region in 2021, an increase of 55% since 2010, and an increase of 5 million over the previous year. The report also warned that moderate or severe food insecurity negatively affected about 154.3 million people in 2021, an increase of 11.6 million people from the previous year.

He also explained that half of the population of Arab countries could not afford the cost of adopting a healthy diet in 2020. The cost of adopting a healthy diet has been increasing in the Arab region every year since 2017, as the cost in 2020 reached $3.47 per person per day.

Third: the efforts of international organizations to confront the food crisis

In April 2022, as part of a comprehensive global response to the existing food security crisis, the World Bank announced the availability of up to $30 billion over 15 months, including $12 billion in new projects. The goal of this funding is to scale up short- and long-term responses along 4 focal points to enhance food and nutrition security, reduce risks, and strengthen food systems: (1) support producers and consumers, (2) facilitate increased trade in food and inputs, and (3) support the most needy families, and (4) investing in sustainable food and nutrition security.

The Bank achieved its commitment target of $30 billion for the food and nutrition security response. Between April and December 2022, the Bank’s food and nutrition security commitments under the new loans exceeded $12 billion, almost half of which was provided to Africa, one of the regions hardest hit by the food crisis. Examples include:

-At a cost of USD 766 million, the strengthening the resilience of food systems in West Africa program is increasing
food insecurity preparedness and improve the resilience of food systems in West Africa.

-An additional USD 150 million grant for the second phase of the food security and Resilience Response project in Yemen, which will help address food insecurity, strengthen resilience, and protect livelihoods.

– A USD 300 million project in Bolivia will contribute to increasing food security, market access, and the adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices.

-A $315 million loan to support Chad, Ghana and Sierra Leone to increase their preparedness for food insecurity and improve the resilience of their food systems.

– A USD 130 million loan to Tunisia aimed at reducing the impact of the war in Ukraine by financing vital soft wheat imports and providing emergency support to cover barley imports for dairy and seed production for small farmers for the upcoming planting season.

-The $3 billion Enhancing Food Systems Resilience in Eastern and Southern Africa program is helping countries in both regions increase the resilience of their food systems and their ability to respond to rising food insecurity.

Fourth: The Egyptian state’s efforts to confront the food crisis

The Egyptian state seeks to confront the food crisis by exerting more efforts through the following:

1- Reclaiming more agricultural lands, as the cultivated land area in Egypt increased by about 9% to reach 9.7 million acres in 2021, compared to 8.9 million acres in 2014. The 2023/22 plan aims to increase the agricultural area by half a million acres within the scope of projects Horizontal expansion, which includes the Mostaqbal Egypt and the New Delta project on the Dabaa axis in the northwestern coast, the Toshka development project south of the New Valley, and the East Owainat project in the southwestern part of the Western Desert.

2- Increasing the self-sufficiency of some strategic crops by expanding agriculture and reclaiming more land, as the state aims to increase the area planted with wheat by about one and a half million acres over the next two years to reach self-sufficiency to 65% by 2025.

3- Providing maximum support to the agricultural sector and farmers, and continuing to develop the contract farming system to encourage the expansion of strategic crop cultivation.

4- implementation of a number of projects in the field of livestock development and maximization of its products. These projects are represented in the establishment of several farms for breeding and fattening cattle of meat breeds and other farms for raising dairy cattle and the establishment of integrated modern automated slaughterhouses in addition to factories for various dairy products.

5-the implementation of giant projects for the development of fish resources in Ghalioun, Fayrouz and Dibba, made Egypt ranked first in Africa in the field of fish farming, and the sixth globally, as the output from fish farming areas in the country has been increased from 1.1 million tons in 2014 to 2 million tons so far.

6-Implementation of the “European Union support for food security in Egypt” program funded by a grant of 100 million euros. Projects related to the remaining amount, estimated at 60 million euros, are being agreed upon. This is to meet the challenges of food security resulting from the Russian-Ukrainian war, in addition to strengthening national efforts in the field of grain production and storage, stimulating climate resilience and increasing strategic grain storage capacities.

7- The current development cooperation portfolio between Egypt and the European Union has amounted to about 3 billion euros. These projects are financed through European financing mechanisms within the framework of bilateral and regional cooperation, and the Blended Finance mechanism.

8– Three phases of the debt swap program for development between Egypt and Italy have been implemented, at a value of 350 million euros, through which 106 projects will be financed in the following sectors: food security, education, agriculture, civil society, environment and cultural heritage.

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The world is currently depending on measuring the level of progress of any society and its interest in human development through two basic criteria, which are the political participation of women, and their empowerment in all fields after depriving them of exercising their political rights in the old decades and excluding them from participation in all fields.

In this context, the current political leadership of Egypt believes in the necessity of integrating women politically and pushing them towards promotion to higher government positions, in line with the democratic transformation that the country is witnessing, and in the interest of achieving comprehensive development.

Challenges facing women’s political empowerment

-Masculine culture: Egyptian women are still captive to a rigid culture that defines roles for men and women and deepens images of discrimination between them.

-Religious discourse: The collective awareness of Egyptians with regard to women’s issues and their political participation is affected by some interpretations and jurisprudential opinions that oppose their work and vary between absolute rejection and partial rejection.

-The high rate of illiteracy among women: The fact that women do not have access to education makes their opportunity to participate in political life very difficult, even impossible.

-The weakness of the role of civil society organizations in empowering women politically, as it is still far from supporting the political role of women, and raising community awareness of the effectiveness of their role in achieving the comprehensive development of society.

 Efforts of the state to support woman political empowerment

1- Constitutional and legislative mechanisms:

A-   Women in constitutional texts:

The 2014 constitution provided real opportunities to eliminate discrimination against women and stimulate their political participation, in a way not seen in previous Egyptian constitutions.

B- Laws supporting the political empowerment of women: Since 2014, the country has witnessed a legal momentum with regard to laws and decisions related to women, the most prominent of which are the following:

-Parliament Law No. 46 of 2014, which stipulates a number of seats for women in the list system (not less than 25% of the total number of seats).

-Law No. 45 of 2014 promulgating the Law Regulating Political Participation.

-Law No. 141 of 2020 of the Senate Law provides for the allocation of no less than 10% of seats for women, out of the total number of seats.

2- Decisions supporting the political empowerment of women:

Laws were issued to empower women in senior management positions, as follows:

– The Central Bank amended the governance rules to form the boards of directors of banks and to stipulate the presence of at least two women on the boards of directors of banks in 2021.

– The General Authority for Financial Supervision also issued Decision No. (48/2022) stipulating that no less than 25% or two women should be represented on the boards of directors of companies and non-bank financial entities.

3- Supporting strategies and programs:

A- The National Strategy for the Empowerment of Egyptian Women 2030:

The strategy is consistent with the 2014 Constitution, Egypt’s Vision 2030 and is integrated with its work axes that seek to build a just society characterized by equal rights and opportunities, and achieve the highest degrees of cohesion, solidarity and integration.

The vision of the Women’s Empowerment Strategy 2030 is based on the fact that by 2030 Egyptian women will become major actors in achieving sustainable development. Achieving this vision requires action through four axes: “political empowerment and strengthening women’s leadership roles, economic empowerment, social empowerment, and protection.”

With regard to the axis of political empowerment, the general objective is to stimulate women’s political participation in all its forms, including parliamentary representation at the national and local levels, and to prevent discrimination against women in assuming leadership positions in executive and judicial institutions, and to prepare women for success in positions.

The strategy identified a number of indicators to measure the impact of the political empowerment axis, including the percentage of females out of the total participants in the elections, and it was 44% in 2014. The strategy aims to reach 50% in 2030.  Percentage of women’s representation in Parliament in 2016 was 15%, and the target in 2030 is to reach 35%. Percentage of female representation in local councils in 2014 was 25%, and the strategy aims in 2030 to reach 35%. Percentage of females in judicial bodies was 0.5% in 2015, and the target in 2030 is to reach 25%. Percentage of females in public positions was 5% in 2015, and the target is 17%. In 2030, Percentage of females in senior management positions was 19% in 2015, and the target in 2030 is to reach 27%.

The strategy identified a number of interventions to reach these percentages, as follows:

-Enhancing the role of women as voters: by completing the issuance of national identification cards for all women in all governorates.

-Increasing the representation of women in elected parliaments and enhancing their performance by identifying women leaders to train them to carry out the tasks of parliamentary representation, and developing programs to support women candidates for the House of Representatives in a way that helps them gain the confidence of voters.

– Enhancing opportunities for women to assume leadership positions in all judicial bodies and setting criteria for selecting candidates for judicial office that avoid discrimination against women and prioritize competence.

-Increasing women’s assumption of leadership positions in the executive agencies of the state through the development of integrated programs for young women leaders to prepare them to assume positions and train them to carry out their tasks.

B- The National Strategy for Human Rights (2021-2026): It was launched in 2021 and contains four axes, and it has a special section on “women’s rights.”

C- The “Women’s Executive Leadership” program to build the capacities of female government employees.

D- The “Women Leading the Future” program, which is a mentoring program for young women to develop their leadership and management skills and build their capacities.

4- Measures supporting women’s political empowerment

A- Expanding the number of community education schools, in which girls constituted the largest percentage of enrollment at 67.31%.

B- Establishing equal opportunity units at the level of government institutions and some private sector institutions, which aim to ensure a safe work environment that prevents discrimination, and to improve the conditions of Egyptian women in all fields.

c- The development of microfinance balances directed to women, as it contributed significantly to supporting women, and females accounted for 62% of the number of beneficiaries.

  Recommendations to activate women’s participation in political work 

The state is making efforts to achieve gender equality and empower women politically, but the process of political empowerment of women still needs to take more measures and decisions to overcome any obstacles:

– Working on reviewing and amending laws related to women’s rights, especially personal status, and those related to increasing the percentage of their representation in state institutions and enhancing their participation in assuming leadership positions in their societies.

-Developing a clear plan by the media in order to modify the stereotyped image of women, and to reveal the reality of their abilities that qualify them to participate in public and political life in particular.

-Increasing the financial support allocated to the process of qualifying and building the capacities of women cadres in all fields

– Empowering women in the economic field and increasing their participation in the production process is a necessity to enable them to participate in politics and occupy a prominent position in political decision-making.

– The necessity of providing accurate statistics and the necessary information on the volume of women’s political participation, and working on developing indicators that measure progress in women’s empowerment at the personal, societal and institutional levels.

– The need for political parties, trade unions and civil organizations to develop policies and mechanisms to ensure fair representation of women.

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The world is currently depending on measuring the level of progress of any society and its interest in human development through two basic criteria, which are the political participation of women, and their empowerment in all fields after depriving them of exercising their political rights in the old decades and excluding them from participation in all fields.

In this context, the current political leadership of Egypt believes in the necessity of integrating women politically and pushing them towards promotion to higher government positions, in line with the democratic transformation that the country is witnessing, and in the interest of achieving comprehensive development.

The focus will be on the axis of political empowerment and strengthening the leadership roles of women 2030, given the obstacles that faced their political participation throughout history, through 6 axes:

First Axis: concept of political empowerment.

Second Axis: dimensions and elements of political empowerment.

Third Axis: indicators of political empowerment of women in Egypt.

The paper’s main findings are as follows:

1- The representation of women in the current government is 18%, compared to 6% in 2015 and 2.8% in 2013.

2-The percentage of women as deputy ministers increased from 17% in 2017 to 22.2% in 2022, with two women out of 9 deputies.

3- The number of assistant ministers reached 41.4% in 2019, while the percentage of women in the position of deputy governor reached 30.4% in 2019.

-4 The percentage of women assuming leadership positions in the Ministry of Local Development was about 34.4%, and 33% in the Petroleum Authority and Holding Companies, and in the Ministry of Electricity it was about 43%, and about 40% in the Ministry of Health and 43% in the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

5- The representation of women in the Egyptian diplomatic cadre in 2021 reached about 30% of the total number of diplomats.

6- The percentage of women’s representation in Parliament 2020 is about 27%, which is the highest percentage of women in the history of the Egyptian Parliament, which made Egypt rank 16th in the world, and the first in the Arab world in terms of women’s representation in Parliament.

7- Egypt advanced 48 places in the index of women’s political empowerment in the Global Gender Gap Report.

The paper present a number of recommendations:

1- Reviewing and amending laws related to women’s rights, especially personal status laws, and increasing their representation in various institutions and enabling them to assume leadership positions.

2- Coordinating between state institutions, civil society, and the media to adopt an expanded campaign to raise awareness of women’s successes in many fields, and to enhance society’s confidence in the capabilities and competence of Egyptian women and their ability to assume leadership positions.

3- Increasing the financial support allocated to the process of qualifying and building the capacities of women cadres in all fields and training them on leadership, management, decision-making, planning, communication and influence skills.

4- Political parties, trade unions, and civil organizations develop policies and mechanisms to ensure fair representation of women and push them towards assuming leadership positions within them, and prepare and qualify them to run in legislative elections.

First: political empowerment of women concept 

Empowerment is the removal of all stereotypical processes, trends and behaviors in society and institutions that marginalize women and other groups and put them in lower ranks.

As for the political empowerment of women, it means their access to decision-making and leadership positions that influence decision-making or policy development or it is to make women possess the strength, capabilities and ability to be an active element in change, especially political development.

political empowerment of women concept is linked to self-realization and enhancing their capabilities to participate in political life, such as parliamentary representation, access to decision-making positions, and drawing up public policies, by relying on policies and procedures and adopting constitutional and legal legislation that guarantees the elimination of all practices of discrimination and exclusion to which women are exposed.

Second: Dimensions and components of women’s political empowerment

The political empowerment of women involves two dimensions: the subjective dimension: which appears through the individual awareness of women in terms of their sense of the circumstances surrounding them, and their ability to obtain new knowledge in all areas of life, and the social dimension: which appears through creating an environment conducive to the political integration of women in the form that It gives it the full ability to bring about change within society as one of the engines of development in society.

A set of elements that are necessary for the political empowerment of women to be achieved:

-A constitutional and legislative environment that supports women’s orientation towards political participation and their assumption of leadership and senior political positions.

-A community environment that believes in the role of women as an essential and active partner in various community issues and as pioneers of change and development.

-A supportive cultural environment for women’s political participation by increasing societal awareness and changing stereotypes about the role of women.

-Media support women’s participation in political life and contribute to changing the prevailing stereotype of women, especially in light of patterns of discourse hostile to the idea of ​​women’s participation.

-United Nations indicators to measure the concept of empowerment of women:

·Women’s participation in leadership positions, in committees and public positions.

· Providing non-traditional education and training opportunities for women.

· Women’s participation in the decision-making process.

· Women acquire organizational skills and abilities to create groups to demand rights.

Third: Indicators of political empowerment of women in Egypt

We can review the most important indicators of the political empowerment of Egyptian women as follows:

1-Women in the executive branch:

A. Ministers:

Women obtained 6 ministerial portfolios within the Council of Ministers, representing 18% of the total number of ministers in the current government, compared to 6% in 2015 and 2.8% in 2013. The female ministers are: Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, Minister of International Cooperation, Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Culture, Nevine El-Kilani, Minister of Social Solidarity, Nevine El-Kabbaj, Minister of State for Immigration and Affairs of Egyptians Abroad, Soha Gendy, and Minister of Planning and Economic Development, Hala El-Saeed.

It is noticeable here that women hold ministries that are closer to the traditional roles of women imposed by society, with limited exceptions confined to the ministries of investment, international cooperation and planning, while sovereign ministerial positions were and still are the preserve of men.

B. Senior management positions:

The development of the  women presence  in senior management positions, as the percentage of women as assistant ministers increased from 17% in 2017 to about 22.2% in 2022, with two women out of 9 assistant. While the percentage of women in the position of assistant governor reached 30.4% in 2019.

The percentage of women assuming leadership positions within ministries, according to the follow-up report on the activities of ministries 2019-2020 issued by the National Council for Women, was about 34.4% in the Ministry of Local Development, 33% in the Petroleum Authority and Holding Companies, and in the Ministry of Electricity it reached about 43%, and about 40% in Ministry of Health and 43% in the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

c-Diplomatic and consular corps

The representation of women in the Egyptian diplomatic cadre in 2021 reached about 30% of the total number of diplomats, which reflects the keenness of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its interest in women joining the diplomatic work. More than ten female ambassadors also hold the positions of head of a diplomatic mission and consul general abroad, thus increasing the percentage by 7.5% compared to 2012, when the representation of women in the diplomatic and consular corps was 22.5%. Despite this, the proportion of women is still weak compared to men in occupying these jobs.

D. Local Administration

Local administration units

The percentage of women’s representation in the various local administration units is very weak, as there are only a limited number of women who occupy the positions of assistant  governors, heads of neighborhoods and mayors.

Local councils

For the first time in Egyptian constitutions, the 2014 constitution stipulated allocating a quarter of seats for women in local councils, but no elections have been held so far, the last of which was in 2008, when the percentage of women’s representation was 7.4%.

2-Women in the legislative power

Parliament:

In the House of Representatives elections in 2020, women won 162 seats in Parliament (the appointment system is 14 women, 148 women are by the electoral system) out of a total of 564 seats, which represents about 27% in the House of Representatives. This percentage is the highest in the history of parliament, which made Egypt rank 16th in the world, and the first in the Arab world in terms of women’s representation in Parliament in 2020.

Figure No. (1) shows the proportions of women’s representation in the House of Representatives according to the quota system

Senate:

The percentage of women in the Senate reached 14%, with 41 seats out of a total of 300 seats, compared to 2.7% in 2012, and a woman was appointed for the first time to the position of Deputy Senate.

It should be noted here that the “quota” mechanism for allocating seats contributed to increasing the number of women in parliament, but this measure remains incomplete as long as it did not contribute to integrating women into the electoral process and enhancing their ability to gain the confidence of the electorate.

3- Women in the judiciary

A-    The Constitutional Court: A judge – Dr. Fatima Mohamed Ahmed Al-Razzaz, Dean of Law of Helwan – was appointed as a assistant  the Supreme Constitutional Court in 2020. She is the second woman to be appointed to the court since its inception in 1969, after the late Chancellor Tahani Al-Jabali, who was appointed in 2003.

B-    The High Judiciary: The number of female judges reached about 66, divided into 6 with the rank of chief of appeal, 16 assistant chief of appeal, 32 chief of court, and 13 with the rank of judge, after 31 female judges were appointed in 2007, then another group was appointed in 2008, then A third group in 2015 includes 26 women who were appointed as judges of the courts of first instance. To date, this is a small number, as there are more than 16,000 judges.

C- The State Lawsuits Authority: The percentage of female judges in the State Lawsuits Authority reached about 20% during 2021. Six women counselors were appointed as vice-chairmen of the State Lawsuits Authority in 2017.

d – Public Prosecution: 11 female judges were appointed to the Public Prosecution, for the first time after the approval of the Supreme Judicial Council, based on a request submitted by the Public Prosecutor, Counselor Hamada Al-Sawy, to transfer 11 female judges to work for the Public Prosecution, with their grades corresponding to the judiciary, to work for the Public Prosecution for the judicial year 2021/2022, and also for the first time. The door is opened for females to apply for the position of assistant public prosecutor in 2022.

4- Women in political parties, trade unions and civil society organizations 

Women’s participation in political parties is still very weak, not exceeding 5%, especially since most parties’ regulations do not provide for allocating a specific percentage for women. In addition, women did not assume the position of president of a political party, its official spokesperson, or its secretary-general, so men occupy such positions, and the role of women is limited to women’s committees, social and service work, and organizing events and seminars. Women’s participation in political parties is still very weak, not exceeding 5%, especially since most parties’ regulations do not provide for allocating a specific percentage for women.

At the level of professional syndicates, which number about 25, we find that their regulations do not take into account the gender dimension, and women are not represented fairly.

With regard to non-governmental organizations, the gap between the representation of men and women in decision-making positions is evident in favor of men, and despite the participation of women in field and administrative work, they are excluded from leadership positions, especially in rural societies that are still dominated by a patriarchal culture.

As a result of the serious steps taken by the Egyptian state in the path of women’s empowerment at the political level, Egypt has advanced by about 48 ranks in the women’s political empowerment index in the Global Gender Gap Report, reaching its best level in 10 years, as it occupied the 78th position in 2021 compared to the 126th position in 2011. It also advanced 70 places in the indicator of women’s representation in parliament, as it occupied the 66th position in 2021, compared to the 136th position in 2020.

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The Strategic Forum for Public Policy and Development Studies publishes a policy paper on social justice in the belief in the importance of building a just and concerted society capable of guaranteeing citizens’ right to a dignified life through the following themes:

First: the concept of social justice and its importance

Second: Social justice in the Egyptian constitution

Third: State efforts to achieve social justice

Fourth: the challenges of achieving social justice

Fifth: Proposed paths towards achieving social justice

 First: the concept of social justice and its importance

The beginning of the use of the term “social justice” dates back to the French Revolution, when Paris emphasized the rights of people to enjoy this justice and the necessity of dividing wealth while getting rid of feudal rule. This expression then continued with a number of definitions that varied in time during the industrial revolution in Europe in the eighteenth century with the workers’ class suffering from the cruelty of the capitalist system.

With the development of human societies, the concept of social justice crystallized, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the decision of the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1948, established the humanitarian principles of social justice in its first and second articles, and the International Labor Organization drafted its constitution, which it placed in its preface that “ Peace can only be achieved if it is based on social justice.

A number of sociologists affirm that the concept of social justice means creating an intellectual system, an ethical approach, and legislative provisions that guarantee all persons complete equality before the law and access to all rights, while other scholars believe that social justice is a fundamental entitlement of man stemming from the fact that he has the right to Enjoying a set of social, economic and political rights as basic human rights and an integral part thereof.

Social justice, therefore, can be said to be a system aimed at eliminating significant social and economic disparities between strata of society and ensuring individuals’ cooperation in a united society in which everyone has equal and effective opportunities.

Second: Social justice in the Egyptian constitution

Successive Egyptian constitutions have addressed the topic of social justice and have in some way stipulated it from the 1923 Constitution to the 2014 Constitution, but the latter’s texts highlight the concept of social justice in an unprecedented manner. It explicitly obliges the State to achieve social justice and provide social solidarity to ensure a decent life for all citizens. s rights “, and their right to education, health and equal rights and duties as follows:
– Article 8 of the constitution states that “society is based on social solidarity, and the state is committed to achieving social justice and providing means for social solidarity, in a way that guarantees a decent life for all citizens, as regulated by law.”

– Article 9 stipulates that “the State is obliged to achieve equality of opportunity for all citizens, without discrimination”, and article 11 that “the State shall ensure equality between women and men in all civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution. It shall also provide for the care and protection of motherhood, childhood, breadwinner and elderly women and women most in need.”

-Article 13 of the constitution stipulates that “the state is committed to preserving the rights of workers.” And in Article 17 that “the state guarantees the provision of social insurance services, and every citizen who does not enjoy the social insurance system has the right to social security, in a way that guarantees him a decent life, if he is unable to support himself and his family, and in cases of inability to work, old age and unemployment, and the state works To provide a suitable pension for small farmers, agricultural workers, fishermen, and informal workers.

Third: State efforts to achieve social justice

The Egyptian state began procedures for achieving social justice with an unprecedented legislative and constitutional framework in its history, as we mentioned above. Contributing to the realization of these goals was the awareness of the political leadership that supported these measures and directions and assumed its responsibilities with all courage towards the Egyptian people and worked to achieve their aspirations.

The most prominent measures taken by the state to achieve social justice, based on what the state agencies announced through their websites, and what was mentioned in the report issued by the Media Center of the Prime Ministry, entitled “Where We Were and How We Have Become”. It came as follows:

1- Spending on social protection programs:

Egypt has succeeded in being among the countries that spend the most on social protection programs as a percentage of the gross domestic product, and the first in the Arab world and Africa. It is in the same rank with major countries such as Russia, the United States of America, Australia, Brazil and Argentina, and ahead of other major countries in the field of spending on social protection programs such as China, Canada and Saudi Arabia.

The new presidential decree package for social protection:

On Saturday, March 2, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi issued a package of new social protection decisions, bringing the total social packages within a year to about 3 packages, with the aim of alleviating the severity of the economic crisis on the shoulders of low-income citizens. Approximately 37 million citizens will benefit from the third package, starting from the beginning of April 2023, as follows:

4.6 million citizens work in the state’s administrative apparatus

-10 million citizens are pensioners.

-5.1 million families benefited from the “Takaful and Karama” program, or about 22.7 million citizens.

The decisions were as follows:

-Increasing the minimum wage for the sixth grade and its equivalent to 3,500 pounds per month

-Increasing the minimum wage for the qualitative third grade and its equivalent to 5,000 pounds per month.

-Increasing the minimum wage for state-employed master’s degree holders to EGP 6,000 per month.

-Increasing the minimum wage for state-employed PhD holders to 7,000 pounds per month. Pensions increased by 15%.

-Raising the annual income tax exemption limit from 24,000 pounds to 30,000 pounds annually.

-Increasing the financial categories granted to beneficiaries of Takaful and Karama programs by 25% per month.

Items of expenditure on social protection programmes:

-Total spending on support, grants, and social benefits amounted to about 343.4 billion pounds in 2021/2022, compared to 228.6 billion pounds in 2013/2014, an increase of 50.2%.

-In the budget for the fiscal year 2022/2023, sufficient and appropriate financial allocations were made to support food commodities to ensure the availability of both bread and basic food commodities for about 71 million citizens, at a cost of EGP 90 billion.

-A 4-fold increase in the value of cash support after the implementation of the Takaful and Karama program, which amounted to 20 billion pounds in 2021/2022, compared to 5 billion pounds in 2013/2014. EGP 22 billion has been allocated in the 2022/2023 budget to include 450,000 new families in the solidarity and dignity system.

-The financial allocations for the National Social Insurance Organization have multiplied 6-fold, reaching about EGP 180 billion in the 2021/2022 budget, after it was EGP 29.2 billion in the 2013/2014 budget.

-The per capita allocation on ration cards increased from 15 pounds in 2014 to 50 pounds in 2022, and exceptional support was disbursed from September 2022 to June 2023, adding 100 pounds for the card that includes one family, 200 for the card that includes two or three families, and 300 pounds for more than 3 families.

-3 billion pounds, the cost of disbursing an exceptional monthly allowance of 300 pounds per month for state workers and pensioners
-8 billion pounds annually, the cost of increasing the personal tax exemption limit on income for all workers in the state and the private sector, to reach 30 thousand pounds annually instead of 24 thousand pounds, an increase of 25%.

-The cost of fixing service fees due to the failure to implement the plan to increase electricity prices during the current fiscal year amounted to about 43 billion pounds.

-3 billion pounds is an additional cost borne by the state treasury to continue disbursing the social protection package prescribed by ration cards for 10.5 million families until June 30, 2023.

-9 billion pounds is an additional cost for the continuation of the decision to stabilize electricity prices for homes for an additional 6 months, until June 30, 2023.

Beneficiaries of social protection programs

-The number of beneficiaries of the latest package of social protection decisions (March 2023) reached about 37 million citizens.

– the number of beneficiaries from the bread system has reached 71 million, and 62.8 million beneficiaries from the catering system.

-The number of families benefiting from cash support programs has more than tripled after the launch of Takaful and Karama, reaching 5.2 million families in 2022, compared to 1.7 million families in 2014.

-The number of citizens who were treated through the presidential initiative to eliminate waiting lists increased to reach about 147 thousand cases in 2022, after their number was 78 thousand cases in 2014.

-6.8 million Beneficiaries of the health care program for those unable to hold Daman, Takaful and Karama pension cards.

Procedures and decisions to provide a decent life for citizens:

-Increase the allocation of health in the 2022/2023 budget to reach 310 billion pounds, up 34.4 billion pounds from the 2021/2022 budget.

– Increase pre-university education allocations by 61 billion pounds to reach 317 billion pounds in the year 2022/2023, higher and university education by 27.1 billion pounds to 159.2 billion pounds, and scientific research by 15.2 billion pounds to 79.3 billion pounds.

– Increase the allocation of food (including school food) with a budget of 2023/2022 to 12.2 billion pounds, an annual increase from the expected results for 2021/2022;

– Increase transport and transit allocations by the 2023/2022 budget to 4.9 billion pounds, an annual increase of 6.8%, and water allocations to 2.7 billion pounds, an annual increase of 11%.

Economic Empowerment Efforts:

-The government provided 43.8 billion pounds to finance 1.8 million projects by the Small and Micro Enterprises Development Authority, which provided about 2.8 million job opportunities until November 2022.

-The state has also funded 26.9 thousand projects from the Local Development Fund at a cost of EGP 184.8m, in addition to financing more than 200.7 projects under the Mashrak program at a value of EGP 25.6bn, which provided nearly 2 million job opportunities until the end of November 2022.

-Loans amounting to 87 billion pounds were also provided for social and investment activities funded by Nasser Social Bank, which benefited about 20.4 million citizens.

Decent health care

A plan was drawn up to promote the health insurance organization to be implemented through 6 phases. The first phase was in Port Said, Ismailia, Luxor, South Sinai and Aswan at a total cost of 51.2 billion pounds and benefited more than 5 million citizens.

More than 17 million medical and treatment services have been provided through the medical facilities of the Public Authority for Health Care, and more than 270,000 surgeries have been performed under the umbrella of comprehensive health insurance since the system was implemented.

The state also launched 16 health initiatives with a total of 152.1 million visits by citizens until June 2022, most notably the presidential initiative to eliminate waiting lists for critical interventions in 2018, benefiting 1.5 million citizens who underwent surgeries, in addition to launching the presidential initiative to eliminate virus C and detect non-viral diseases. In force in 2018, 61.6 million citizens benefited from it, and they were examined nationwide, and 4 million citizens were provided with free treatment.

The vision of international institutions for social work in Egypt:

The World Bank confirmed that the Egyptian economic reform program was accompanied by great efforts to expand the scope of social protection programs to include social safety nets and increase the quantities of food commodities on ration cards, praising the “Solidarity and Dignity” program for cash transfers.

The United Nations: The international organization believes that the political leadership launched the “Decent Life” initiative, which contributed to improving the living conditions of the poorest rural communities in terms of adequate housing, sanitation services, clean water, education and health.

The International Monetary Fund: In its recent statements, it affirmed that it welcomes the measures taken by Egypt in order to expand the targeted scope of spending on social protection, especially in light of the international crises, to absorb external shocks.

The Economist emphasized that Egypt provided lessons to different countries in their struggle against hepatitis C and their treatment of the “C” virus by implementing a national examination and treatment program for the largest number of the population in a short period.

Fourth: the challenges of achieving social justice

The state is still facing many challenges that impede the effectiveness of these programs, foremost of which are:

1- Corruption: Egypt fell 3 places in the Transparency International Anti-Corruption Index for the year 2022, to rank 130 out of 180 countries, after it was in the 127th position in 2021. This index measures the evaluation of countries through levels of public sector corruption, based on 13 Benchmark and survey of experts and executives.

2- The low level of individual income: The low incomes of Egyptians pose a major challenge to social protection actions and programmes, as they are not commensurate with higher prices and inflation rates.

3- The support system: There is no doubt that the Egyptian state has taken a big step by providing cash support to the deserving groups, but the commodity and in-kind support system needs to raise its efficiency and link it to the real needs of citizens.

4- The weak role of the media in promoting the concept and means of achieving social justice and consolidating its values among citizens. The responsibility of achieving social justice in the media lies in educating society about its multiple dimensions.

5- Illiteracy constitutes a major obstacle to achieving social justice in the Egyptian society, as the increase in illiteracy rates means an increase in unemployment rates, a widening of the circle of poverty, and a decrease in the quality of life of citizens, which thus impedes the achievement of any tangible progress towards achieving social justice.

. Proposed pathways towards social justice

In order to achieve greater social justice in Egyptian society in the light of Egypt’s Vision 2030, we recommend the following:

1- Fighting corruption in all state institutions as a national goal in which the state cooperates with citizens through policies and procedures in which the citizen feels the importance of his role in controlling corruptors and combating corruption in general, and material and moral incentives can be given to citizens who expose all aspects of corruption in state institutions.

2- Developing an integrated mechanism for monitoring and evaluating the national anti-corruption strategy in order to measure the progress made in implementing action plans.

3- Reformulating the subsidy system and ensuring that subsidy reaches those who deserve it accurately.

4- Establishing an accurate database that includes the data of the marginalized groups, the most needy, and the beneficiaries of the revenues of social protection programs.

5- The shift to conditional cash support in exchange for the “commodity” in-kind support system, especially since it ensures that support reaches those who deserve it and contributes to controlling the structure of public spending and state expenditures.

6- Increasing the allocation from the state budget for the education and health sectors, expanding the construction of government hospitals and schools, and increasing the number of qualified teachers. It is also possible to increase the number of distinguished experimental and experimental schools, which may be a haven for children of the middle class, with appropriate educational expenses

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