Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi attaches special importance to preserving the entity of the Egyptian family and improving the citizens’ quality of life in the various spheres, affirmed Social Solidarity Minister Nivine el Kabbag.
During a meeting held on Wednesday with Middle East News Agency’s (MENA) staff and moderated by MENA Board Chairman and Editor-in-Chief Ali Hassan, Kabbag also pointed out to the National Family Development Project, which was launched by president Sisi with the aim of securing a decent life for all citizens.
The Social Solidarity Ministry is keen on supporting Egypt’s most impoverished and vulnerable segments of the society, as part of president Sisi’s directives in this respect, added the minister.
Several categories have been included in the ministry’s support programmes, she said, adding that great attention is given to amending the needed legislation to protect the “kafala” family and support family bonds.
Most of those covered by the social protection umbrella have been included into “Takaful and Karama” programme, except about 300,000 families, said the minister.
The programme now includes new segments of the society, including the breadwinners, the elderly above 65 years old and people with disabilities and diseases and orphans, she further said.
New segments will become part of “Takaful and Karama” programme, including unmarried women who reached 50 years of age and those who deserve urgent support and for a limited period, including the fishermen who are forced to temporarily suspend their work, said Social Solidarity Minister Nivine el Kabbag.
Speaking during the meeting, the minister said that efforts are underway to issue a unified law and program for social aid to include all the eligible citizens.
Talking about the suggested legislative amendments which aim to support ” kafala” mother, the minister affirmed that the amendments mainly aim to make adoption more accessible and widespread.
The mother, who adopts a baby in his/her very first months, is in need of privileges and legal rights, which allow her to provide the necessary care for the infant, she went on to say.
The suggested legislative amendments would contribute to making adoption more accessible, widespread and socially acceptable, added the minister.
The adoptive mother could not travel without taking a prior approval from the Social Solidarity Ministry, she said, adding that the social clubs do not allow the adopted child to be enrolled in the clubs’ membership.
“We are exerting painstaking efforts in the legislative front in order to ensure that the child and the foster parents are protected against all forms of discrimination and preserve the rights of the adopted children,” said the minister.
The minister also pointed out that the foster parents have the full right to feel the close family ties with these children.
Presidential directives in this respect will greatly contribute to solving these problems, she went on to say.
The minister, meanwhile, pointed out to the Ministry’s efforts in supporting the women breadwinners and persons with special needs.
The Ministry has increased its allocations to the persons with special needs to hit LE5 billion, representing 27 per cent of all cash support.
Social Solidarity Minister Nivine el Kabbag said that the female breadwinners obtain 19 per cent of cash support.
“Women constitute about 75 per cent of the total beneficiaries of the Ministry’s social programme,” added the minister.
Kabbag also emphasised that her Ministry is very keen on supporting and maximising women’s rights.
“We are co-operating with the specialised organisations in order to provide all support to women,” she affirmed.
The Ministry is keen on supporting Egypt’s most vulnerable women to enable them to overcome difficulties besetting them, she added.
New centres, affiliated with the Ministry, dubbed “working women centres” have been established in order to provide the necessary care for the elderly and people with special needs, a matter which will alleviate the burden on women, she further said.
The centre is entitled to providing training in several areas, loans and creating opportunities for Egyptian women to work from home, she said, adding the centre contributes to supporting the women’s economic empowerment.
The minister also said that she unequivocally supports the working women, adding that the development in the Egyptian society is based on women empowerment, through providing them with the necessary potentials.
Talking about the “care economy”, the minister said that it plays an outsized role in several Western countries, as it saves a lot of time, said the minister, adding that the success of this experiment was a motive to expand it in partnership with the UN Women, in cooperation with the vocational and craft training centres.
The “care economy” is currently spreading in urban areas, she said, noting that her Ministry supports this project in urban and rural areas.
On violence against women, Kabbag said that her Ministry has established nine specialized centres to support victims of domestic abuse.
The Ministry also established the first centre for victims of human trafficking in order to support women, who faced difficult family conditions, she added.
During a meeting held on Wednesday with Middle East News Agency’s (MENA) staff and moderated by MENA Board Chairman and Editor-in-Chief Ali Hassan, Social Solidarity Minister Nivine el Kabbag pointed out to the file of adjusting the status of the NGOs, noting that a new chapter between the State and civil society organisations will be opened.
Kabbag also reviewed the advantages of the new law, including allowing NGOs to be established following notification and exempting the newly established entity from registration fees, customs and real estate taxes.
The new law also dispensed with the 60-day delay that was previously applied, she went on to say.
The number of registered NGOs reached 34,0000 last year, noted the minister, adding that the digitisation process which was endorsed by the Social Solidarity Ministry has paved the way for the NGOs to finalize the registration process.
When asked about the ministry’s role in the “Decent Life” presidential initiative, Kabbag said that her Ministry has developed the first database of poor families in Egypt, noting that the database includes 9.5 million families, with 35 million citizens.
The number of beneficiaries of cash support rose from 1.68 million families in 2014 to hit 3.8 million families in 2021, representing a 21 per cent increase, noted the minister.
Following directives of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, the number of beneficiaries of cash support increased to hit 4.2 million families, she added.
The annual budget of the cash subsidy programme increased from EGP 3.7 billion in 2014 to LE19 billion in 2021, according to the minister.
The minister pointed out that about 3 million Meeza cards were issued for citizens deserving in-kind subsidies, and 200,000 cards for those benefiting from micro-enterprises.
President Abdel Fattah El Sisi approved a 13-per cent increase in pensions, said the minister, adding that the increase will be applied in April rather than July.
Talking about Mawadda project, the minister said that it aims at sustaining the Egyptian family through raising the awareness of young people who are about to get married through an educational programme.
MENA Board Chairman and Editor-in-Chief Ali Hassan, for his part, hailed the efforts exerted by the Social Solidarity Ministry in light of President Sisi’s directives to alleviate the burden shouldered by the citizens and to improve the quality of life for citizens nationwide.
