Assessing Egypt’s performance during past years concerning the implementation of the Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and Development demonstrates its serious commitment to take the necessary actions to create positive environment for its implementation. Both Egypt 2014 Constitution and its Sustainable Development Strategy, Egypt Vision (2030), are instrumental in supporting the adoption of these commitments. Both focus on granting equal rights to all individuals, without any discrimination of any form, and emphasize the rights for health, education and safe environment. Both documents provide the umbrella that allow formulation and adoption of a set of policies, strategies and legislations needed to strengthen the opportunity to create a supportive environment for furthering the commitments within various specified pillars. Special attention is given to youth and women to enhance their participation in various aspects and to ensure their ability to enjoy all their rights without discrimination. This is documented throughout the assessment of different commitments of the AAPDP in this report.

Moreover, both human and financial resources required for the advancement of such commitments were also specified and actions were taken for their availability to re-vitalize the current programs and to develop new programs that respond to prevailing challenges, such as child marriage, violence against women and harmful practices (FGM) as well as sexual harassment and hate crime. The government support for SME projects, is noticeable from the allocation of Egypt Central Bank of LE 200 billion for initiatives aiming to expand youth and women participation in active employment. Currently around 35% of available funds were used to support 62 thousand projects. This will be also instrumental in supporting innovation and creative endeavor.

The comprehensive health insurance system, covering reproductive and sexual health, and the new education system that are being endorsed by the government would lead to significant improvement in the availability and quality of these rights and secure fair and equal opportunities for all individuals, especially women, persons with disability and older people as well as special groups such as persons living with HIV/AIDS. Free movement and migration were also given due attention, especially in view of the instability of the region, where Egypt’s policies to absorb immigrants with normal living conditions. In the meantime, the government established 32 new cities in the past 20 years (out of which 8 are being recently added) to absorb the expected population growth and to reduce high-level concentration in some areas. It aims to absorb 27 million people. A total of LE 75 billion are allocated in the budget 2018/2019 for that purpose. 

The economic reform program was also coupled with an expanded safety net program to support vulnerable groups and enhance their ability to cope with the outcome of the reform program. This included increasing subsidy for essential food commodities, introducing specific pension systems and expanding conditional cash transfer program (Takafol and Karama) and other programs.