Egypt will not shift from food to cash subsidies without public consent: Supply Minister - Society
In remarks to Sada El-Balad TV on Monday night, Farouk noted that subsidies cost the state EGP 234 billion—EGP 100 billion more than the amount allocated for them in the annual public budget.
He mentioned presenting Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly with proposals about the subsidy system shift. However, no agreement has been reached regarding the cash support amount, with the cabinet waiting for the National Dialogue results on the subsidies' probable value.
The current subsidy system allows citizens to buy key food staples via subsidy ration cards at lower-than-market prices, including rice, pasta, cooking oil, and bread.
In December, Egypt's House of Representatives, in principle, approved a government-drafted bill that directs cash-based subsidies to citizens who fall below the poverty line and lack access to social insurance.
According to the draft bill, a Takaful and Karama Fund, affiliated with the Ministry of Social Solidarity, will be established to provide payments to targeted citizens. The fund's resources will come from the state budget, private contributions, and investments.
The Takaful and Karama cash support programme, launched in 2015, is a key pillar of Egypt's social protection system. It offers financial assistance to low-income families, elderly people, and individuals with special needs, particularly in Upper Egypt.
In February, Egypt increased cash support allocations for Takaful and Karama beneficiaries to EGP 41 billion annually in FY2024/2025, providing over EGP 3 billion to 4.7 million families monthly.
The latest figure issued by the state's statistical agency, the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), was in September 2000 when it said Egypt's poverty rate reached 29.7 percent in the 2019/2020 fiscal year.
World Bank figures issued at the end of 2022 show that 32.5 percent of Egypt's population lives in extreme poverty.
According to CAPMAS, the population reached 104.4 million in December 2022.
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