Opening Remarks

by

Ambassador Christian Berger,

Head of the EU Delegation to Egypt

Today’s launch of the social observatory is an important milestone.  The observatory will provide critical information for the government an will underpin our joint projects with the necessary data.

I would like to take this opportunity to commend the socio-economic measures adopted by the Government of Egypt. In a context of persistent income disparities, and aggravation of vulnerabilities in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU is committed to supporting its partners.  Let me emphasis the EU’s continuous effort and willingness to support the different social protection initiatives led by the Ministry of Social Solidarity, and other ministerial initiatives that have allowed to cushion the impact of the health and economic crisis on less advantaged groups.

In the Partnership Priorities signed in 2022, the EU and Egypt have committed to continue working jointly in the fields of social protection and healthcare coverage, and in particular towards the roll out of the Universal Health Insurance, planned to reach a national coverage by 2032.  Our assistance will help address the demographic challenges faced by the country, and include support to the National Population Strategy in its multiple dimensions.

Support will also be provided to the implementation of an integrated social protection system and selected contributory and non-contributory interventions, in order to reduce socio-economic gaps and enhance the resilience of the less advantaged groups, fully complementing the Government’s cash-transfer schemes Takaful and Karama or  education programmes such as Forsa.

In this regard, among other EU-supported initiatives, I would like to recall our recent disbursement of Budget Support for a total of €89 million to help the Government of Egypt to face the pandemic.  Since 2021, the EU adopted some €130 million worth of programmes to further enhance protection, livelihoods and income generating opportunities and access to services for communities, in particular vulnerable groups and women.