A girl in a classroom.
Where we work

Egypt

In the young and so far unstable Egyptian democracy, Diakonia prioritises support to reform and democratisation processes. Women, people with disabilities and children at risk are in focus for the work of our partner organizations.

Changes due to the Arab spring

In the beginning of 2011, the Egyptian people joined the the Arab World trend of increasing demands for accountability and reforms. But after Hosni Mubarak was forced to step down, little has happened when it comes to improving human rights, democracy and women's rights in Egypt. The political situation is so far very unstable.

The most populated country in the Arab region

With a population of 80 million people, Egypt is the most populated country in the Arab region. Despite its status as a middle income country, many suffer from widespread poverty, lack of employment possibilities and inequalities in society. Discrimination against women exists at all levels of society and violence against women is widespread.

Difficult situation for civil society

The space for civil society in Egypt is shrinking and work is increasingly difficult to undertake due to new restrictions on international development cooperation. As a consequence, several international NGOs have since 2012 closed their offices and left Egypt. A restrictive new NGO law is expected during 2017.

Focus on vulnerable groups

Diakonia has identified the most vulnerable groups in Egypt:

  • Women
  • Youth and children at risk
  • People with disabilities

    Together with our partner organizations, Diakonia supports the struggling democratization and reform processes at the national and local levels.

    To achieve lasting improvement in people's lives, Diakonia supports work carried out on different levels of the Egyptian society by local civil society organizations. Our goals are related to promoting human rights, democracy and gender equality.

    Goal: To eradicate female genital mutilation

    Together with our partner organizations, we are reaching out to homeless and working children, providing basic social and medical services. We provide support to our partner organizations in empowering young girls and women both at local and national level, to eradicate female genital mutilation and to reduce various forms of violence against women. Diakonia and our partner organizations now seek to support the democratisation and reform process that is ongoing in different ways.

    For more information

    Phone: +46 8 453 69 00