The government will soon start providing a new LE 40.3 billion social protection package, before the start of Ramadan, aiming to support low-income and vulnerable groups, Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk announced on Sunday.
Addressing a press conference chaired by Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly, Kouchouk said the measures were introduced in line with directives from President Abdel Fattah El Sisi to ease living pressures and expand social safety nets ahead of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr.
Ahead of the announcement, Madbouly explained that the package will be implemented “immediately”, responding to directives by President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, and will remain in effect until the end of the current FY, June 30, 2026.
The move is an additional allocation that the state and the government have successfully secured, in a decisive response to claims regarding whether improvements in financial and economic indicators benefit citizens, the premier noted.
The prime minister reaffirmed that the gains of economic reform are being directed straight toward supporting citizens and alleviating their burdens.
The package includes direct cash support for eligible families to help them meet living costs during the holy month and the Eid holiday, Kouchouk noted.
Around 10 million households registered on ration cards will receive an additional LE400 in March and April at a total cost of LE8 billion, while 5.2 million families enrolled in the Takaful and Karama programme will receive an extra LE400 during the Fasting month of Ramadan, that starts this week, and Eid at a cost of LE4 billion.
A further 45,000 beneficiaries of child allowances and rural women schemes will receive an additional LE300 over the same period, he added.
Kouchouk said LE 3 billion will be allocated to speed up treatment for patients on waiting lists, as well as critical cases, alongside another LE3 billion to expand state-funded medical treatment for low-income people who are not covered by medical insurance, over the period February- June 2026.
In addition, up to LE3.3 billion will be allocated to accelerate the rollout of Egypt’s Universal Health Insurance system in Minya governorate starting April 1, with the state treasury covering contributions for those unable to pay.
In addition, LE 15 billion will go to the presidential “Haya Karima” (Decent Life) rural development initiative to complete nearly 1,000 projects aimed at improving services in villages of the programme’s first phase.
The package also includes LE4 billion to raise the procurement price of local wheat for the 2026 harvest season from LE2,200 to LE2,350 per ardeb, in a move aimed at supporting farmers and boosting domestic production.
