Latest news with #LE300
Mada
23-07-2025
- Mada
Police close off Kafr al-Sanabsah village in Monufiya after fatal crash exposes harsh living conditions
Police officers have been patrolling near the homes of victims of last month's deadly road crash in Monufiya to ensure that no 'outsiders' approach the families, three residents told Mada Masr. They were among four residents who said that security forces have surrounded the village of Kafr al-Sanabsah for over two weeks in an effort to keep journalists out. The heightened security comes after dire living conditions in the village were thrown into the spotlight by a major crash on the Regional Ring Road in Monufiya which killed 18 women and girls, aged 14 to 22, from Kafr al-Sanabsah on their commute to work as day laborers at agricultural export facilities. As scrutiny of the village increased, security forces have made it difficult for anyone from outside the village to enter. A car carrying visitors who had come to offer condolences was blocked on the grounds that they were not locals, a relative of two of the victims said. Officers inspected the car, checked ID cards for potential journalists and only allowed the group through after calling one of the victims' families to verify they were expecting guests. A relative of another victim said that a car affiliated with Al-Arabiya was barred from entering the village to conduct interviews. Other journalists, who had reached out to families by phone, canceled planned visits after being warned that police would not let them in. A third source, related to another two victims, said security even tried to block him from entry because he lives in a neighboring village. The incident brought attention to the village's dire living conditions, drawing many journalists and visitors in its aftermath. Media reports soon spotlighted the widespread poverty and lack of basic services in the village — particularly educational facilities. When Mada Masr visited Kafr al-Sanabsah, residents noted that there is only one middle school and no secondary school, forcing students to commute to nearby villages or the Menouf district to attend industrial or commercial secondary schools — adding to the financial burden that drives women and girls to seek work despite the high risk and minimal protections for agricultural laborers. Within a week of the crash, the state announced compensation packages: LE200,000 per victim's family from the Social Solidarity Ministry, LE300,000 from the Labor Ministry and LE100,000 from the Transport Ministry. Donations from business figures followed, including Ahmed Ezz and Mohamed Aboul Enein. Later, an unnamed businessman pledged LE2 million to each victim's family — though two families told Mada Masr they are yet to receive the money. 'They couldn't just let us have the donations,' one relative of a victim of the crash said. The village mayor Mohamed Allam summoned the victims' families to a meeting — some of whom attended. There, he asked each family to contribute part of the compensation and donated funds toward buying land to build a secondary school. He proposed that each family donate the equivalent of one kirat of land — around LE250,000. Several residents did not welcome the mayor's request. The relative criticized it, saying that the state owes it to residents to build a school. 'People here really need that money,' he said. 'You came and saw the state of the houses.' The father of one of the victims told Mada Masr that the mayor later tried to persuade those who objected by sending respected community members to mediate. Shortly after the meeting, however, a video circulated on social media in which Allam's brother — according to the same source — said that the initiative to buy land had come voluntarily from the villagers themselves. Mada Masr was unable to reach the mayor for comment, as his phone remained unavailable at the time of publishing. But a close associate of his — a member of the pro-state Nation's Future Party — denied that the initiative was the mayor's idea and insisted it originated with the villagers themselves, adding that the government's Haya Karima initiative would eventually fund the construction of the school. The planned school is set to be built on a 3,500 square meter plot of land, but according to the source, the full amount for the purchase had not yet been paid. Before the crash, villagers had already attempted to pool money to buy land for a school, a father of one of the victims told Mada Masr. But their efforts fell through amid what he described as the state's longstanding neglect of the village.
Mada
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Mada
Another crash on Monufiya ring road kills 10, Sisi orders govt to ‘study' road closure
A crash on the Regional Ring Road in Monufiya killed 10 people on Saturday, marking the second incident of its kind in under 10 days. The traffic collision has driven another wave of public anger over the government's management of road maintenance and development works. The victims, most of whom were from the Ashmon area of Monufiya and heading to Sadat City, were killed after two microbuses collided near the Manshiyet al-Qanater area in Giza Governorate. The part of the road passing through the governorate was the site of another deadly collision on June 27 that killed 19 people, including minors. According to initial media reports, Saturday's crash occurred when two microbuses collided after one driver lost control of his vehicle at high speed in the absence of road signs and traffic control. Nine of the victims were killed immediately, while 11 others were injured and transferred to Bagour General Hospital, according to the Health Ministry. One of the injured died on Sunday. In response, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered the government to consider 'taking the necessary measures to close the road in areas undergoing renovation and maintenance work,' and develop safe alternatives. He also instructed the Interior Ministry to intensify law enforcement against traffic violations. A Cabinet statement later announced LE300,000 in compensation per victim's family from the labor and social solidarity ministries. Labor Minister Mohamed Gobran directed the Central Administration for Irregular Employment Affairs and the Monufiya Labor Directorate to investigate whether the victims are eligible to receive compensation offered to irregular workers. Among those decrying the lack of official action to ensure the road's safety was Egyptian Social Democratic Party MP Freddy al-Bayady, who spoke out against the 'constant and frivolous bleeding out of Egyptian lives.' In a request published in domestic news outlets for the transport and interior ministers to appear before the House of Representatives for questioning, Bayady asked, 'When will the road be closed?' and pressed for the resignation of responsible officials. 'Are you waiting for the road to become an open grave?' Last week's incident on the same road prompted heavy criticism in the media, civil society and the House, with calls for Transport Minister Kamel al-Wazir to resign and condemnation of the neglect of major highway projects constructed during his long tenure. Wazir lashed out at critics, rejecting any comments against himself or his ministry's performance, and placed the blame entirely on one of the drivers implicated in last week's crash. Critics also decried the government's initial half-hearted response to the incident at the time, as well as the absence of labor regulations to protect workers and provide them with safe transportation.
Egypt Independent
12-04-2025
- Politics
- Egypt Independent
Egypt bears costs of US$6 billion for hosting Arab refugees: MP
The Head of the Planning and Budget Committee in the House of Representatives, Fakhry al-Fiqi, revealed that the cost of hosting Arab refugees and guests in Egypt during the current fiscal year amounts to approximately six billion US dollars. During an interview with Sada al-Balad channel on Friday, Fiqi emphasized that this figure reflects the heavy burden borne by the Egyptian state in providing humanitarian, health, and educational services without discrimination. He explained: 'We have approximately nine million guests from sisterly Arab countries, constituting eight percent of the total population, and the state's general budget this year amounts to LE 3.9 trillion, meaning that the cost of this eight percent amounts to approximately LE300 billion.' Fiqi added: 'When we convert this figure to dollars, based on an exchange rate of LE 50 to the dollar, we find that the cost amounts to approximately six billion US dollars.' He noted that this figure is expected to increase in the upcoming 2025/2026 budget, reaching approximately seven billion US dollars. Fiqi assured that Egypt seeks to be provide all those who have sought refuge in it with all services as part of its humanitarian and historical responsibility. 'We simply need to know the extent of the burden borne by the state, especially in light of the difficult economic conditions,' he stressed.
Egypt Independent
27-02-2025
- Business
- Egypt Independent
Egypt unveils LE200 billion relief package amid inflation
Egypt has launched a new social package on Thursday to support groups impacted by rising prices, worth LE200 billion (US$4 billion) during Ramadan and the new fiscal year, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced. Ashraq Business reported that this new package includes raising the minimum wage for state employees to LE7,000 per month, in addition to increasing pensions, providing cash support for beneficiaries of the 'Takaful and Karama' program by 25 percent, and support for farmers and those most in need. This package comes after Egyptian Prime Minister pledged to launch it before the start of Ramadan, noting that the government will take exceptional measures during the holy month and Eid. Pensions raised by 15 percent The government approved a 15 percent increase in pensions starting next July, and Finance Minister Ahmed Kojok said that the Insurance Authority will announce the details of the increase soon. The government estimated the cost of the social package at about LE40 billion over the next two months, while the increase in wages alone amounts to LE85 billion for the next fiscal year. Kojok said that the exceptional cost of living allowance for public sector employees will be raised from LE600 to LE1,000, in addition to disbursing a fixed allowance of LE300 for government employees, starting from the new fiscal year next July. The new package includes the establishment of a fund worth LE10 billion, funded by the state, to achieve economic empowerment for Egyptian families. The coming period will also witness financial facilitations to support farmers with an additional six billion pounds. During the holy month of Ramadan, LE300 will be disbursed to each beneficiary of the Takaful and Karama program, which currently includes 5.2 million beneficiary families, according to the Egyptian Minister of Finance. Aid for 10 Million Egyptian Families The Egyptian government said that financial aid will be disbursed to about 10 million families on ration cards most in need, ranging from LE125-250 during Ramadan (depending on the size of each family) and will be repeated during Eid al-Fitr. The government approved an increase in state-funded treatment allocations, according to Kojok, noting that the aim is to treat all eligible cases at the state's expense, numbering 60,000 cases during March and April. Simultaneously with raising the prices of many government services, which affected inflation rates, Egypt previously implemented two packages to alleviate living burdens on citizens, worth LE240 billion. The first was in September 2023, when President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi directed the government to increase the exceptional cost of living allowance for public sector employees to LE600, instead of LE300, and to increase the minimum income for the sixth grade, to become LE4,000 LE, instead of LE3,500. Then in February, the government decided to raise the minimum wage by 50 percent to reach LE6,000 per month.
