Egypt assigns EGP 635bn for social protection in FY25
Under the patronage of Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Minister of Social Solidarity Maya Morsy inaugurated the first International Conference on Management 2025 in Cairo. The three-day event brings together representatives from 138 organizations across 81 countries to discuss advancements in social protection and governance.
Morsy emphasized Egypt’s strong commitment to social protection, announcing that the current fiscal year’s budget for social programmes stands at EGP 635bn. This funding supports housing, subsidized goods, healthcare services, and both in-kind and cash assistance programmes.
She highlighted that the Ministry of Social Solidarity oversees the region’s largest conditional cash transfer programme, Takaful and Karama, benefiting 4.7 million families—around 17 million citizens. Notably, women make up 70% of beneficiaries. Over the past decade, the programme has achieved high targeting accuracy through robust digital integration, linking over 25 databases. It has also built one of Egypt’s largest citizen databases, covering 12 million families and nearly 50 million individuals.
Morsy also noted that just weeks ago, the Egyptian Parliament approved the Social Security Law, ensuring fairness and reinforcing the right to social security as a core element of social protection. The law guarantees support for individuals not covered by social insurance, ensuring a dignified life for all citizens.
Aligned with the Egyptian Constitution’s mandate for social justice, the law expands social security coverage and adapts to economic shifts to better support low-income families, people with disabilities, the elderly, and orphans. It promotes conditional assistance, aiming to enhance human capital, foster economic empowerment, and create more opportunities for Egyptian women.
Morsy concluded by underscoring the conference’s role in advancing social protection strategies. She called for collaboration and innovation to build a more inclusive and secure future for all.
Source: Daily News Egypt
Egypt to Propose Gaza Reconstruction Plan While Rejecting Palestinians’ Displacement
Egypt announced on Tuesday, 11 February, that it will present a comprehensive plan for the reconstruction of Gaza while ensuring that Palestinians remain on their land, according to a statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.
The ministry reaffirmed Egypt’s firm rejection of any proposals that involve the displacement of Palestinians from the strip. Cairo has repeatedly warned that such plans would undermine regional stability and violate Palestinian rights.
Egypt also expressed its willingness to cooperate with the United States to achieve a “comprehensive and just peace” in the region, emphasizing that a lasting resolution to the Palestinian cause must address the root of the conflict.
The statement stressed that any peace initiative must focus on ending the Israeli occupation and implementing the two-state solution.
The announcement comes following a meeting between Jordan’s King Abdullah II and US President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday 11 February, where Abdullah stated that Egypt would present a proposal on how regional countries could “work” with the US on Washington’s Gaza takeover plan.
While the Jordanian king did not explicitly endorse the proposal, he noted that Arab nations would convene in Riyadh to discuss the matter.
During the meeting, Abdullah also announced that Jordan would immediately take in 2,000 Palestinian children with cancer for treatment, a move Trump described as a “beautiful gesture.”
Trump, who had previously suggested withholding aid from Egypt and Jordan if they refused to permanently resettle Palestinians from Gaza, softened his stance during the meeting, stating, “I don’t have to threaten that, I do believe we’re above that.”
Jordan and Egypt, both US allies and major recipients of American aid, have firmly rejected any plan involving the forced displacement of Palestinians, warning that such a move would undermine regional stability.
The Egyptian and Jordanian positions come in response to Trump’s earlier remarks on 5 February, when he proposed that the United States take over Gaza and transform it into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
Speaking at a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, Trump suggested that the US could “do a real job” in clearing unexploded ordnance and redeveloping the Palestinian territory while simultaneously relocating its 1.8 million residents to other Arab countries.
Source: Farah Samir