Despite some progress in realizing the rights to health and education in Egypt, women's access to education, to health services and to work are still relatively low compared to other lower-middle income countries in the Middle East and North Africa. There are still strong gender disparities that persist in health and education outcomes between men and women.
Making Human Rights Accountability More Graphic
CESR produced a fact sheet on the state of women's economic and social rights in Egypt. It was prepared in light of the upcoming 45th Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) session in January 2010. This fact sheet highlights disparities between men and women in access
to services and in outcomes related to the realization of health,
education, labor and adequate standard of living rights. The Committee's Concluding Observations highlighted issues that were brought up in the fact sheet, such as disparities in access to education, discrimination in employment, maternal mortality and FGM, and the large disadvantages experienced by rural women.
The fact sheet was also prepared in light of Egypt's appearance before the Universial Periodic Review of the Human Rights Council in early 2010. CESR contributed to a NGO joint submission to the Universal Periodic Review, run by the Human Rights Council. CESR was part of a coalition of national and international NGOs who submitted a report on Egypt's compliance with its economic and social rights obligations. The NGO joint submission can be found here. The coalition of NGOs include:
- Arab NGO Network for Development (ANND)
- Association for Health and Environmental Development (AHED)
- Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR)
- Budgetary and Human Rights Observatory
- Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights
- Housing and Land Rights Network- Habitat International Coalition
- Egyptian Association for Community Participation Enhancement
- Center for Trade Union and Workers Services
- Land Center for Human Rights
- Awlad Alard Foundation for Human Rights
- Arab Foundation for Civil Society and Human Rights Support
- Better Life Association for Comprehensive Development
- Civic Monitor for Human Rights
- People's Health Movement
- Habi Center for Environmental Rights
The Summary of Stakeholders' Information was created for the UPR process based on the NGO coalition report and other NGO submissions. That report can be found here. The report reflects the CESR fact sheet with its reporting on female genital mutilation; discrimination women suffer in the work place and their unequal earnings compared to men; inadequate standards of living, especially for women in rural areas; problems in accessing health care and high maternal mortality rates; low access to improved sanitation, especially in rural areas; and disparities between men and women in education and literacy.
Other NGO Reports
Other NGOs also contributed parallel reports on the Egyptian government's compliance with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
- Egyptian NGOs CEDAW Coalition
- Centre for Egyptian Women's Legal Assistance (CEWLA)
- Budgetary and Human Rights Observatory: "A Portrait of Egypt - the squander of socio-economic rights in the implementation of the government development plan, 2002-2007"
- Budgetary and Human Rights Observatory: "Gender-Sensitive Budget in Egypt, 2002-2007"
