NCW head Morsy delivers speech at 63rd Status of Women Commission

CAIRO – 13 March 2019: President of Egypt's National Council for Women (NCW) and political scientist Maya Morsy delivered a speech during the opening of the 63^rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women, which took place at the United Nations Headquarters.

The annual two-week session of the Commission brings together representatives of the United Nations, the UN Member States, as well as organizations and advocates from around the world to discuss the status of women.

The following is Morsi’s speech:

Madam President

Honorable Audience

I would like to express my happiness to be here with you today and extend my greetings and appreciation, I also offer my sincere condolences to victims of the crashed Ethiopian plane.

Our gathering today coincides with Egypt’s celebration of the 100^th anniversary of the Egyptian women struggle in the modern era 1919-2019.

Honorable Audience

The Egyptian constitution guarantees the state’s commitment to realize social justice and provide social solidarity means to ensure a decent life. Article 11 of the constitution obligates the state to provide protection and care for motherhood, childhood, breadwinner woman, the old woman, and disadvantaged woman.

Honorable Audience

Egypt’s political leadership paid sheer attention to the empowerment of the Egyptian woman in all fields when the president declared 2017 a year of the Egyptian woman he asserts the political leadership’s faith in the importance of the women’s role in building society.

Ladies and Gentlemen

The Egyptian government adopts an ambitious economic reform program accompanied by a handful of social protection policies that offer an integrated social security network which include healthcare, cash transfer, pensions, insurance, schools’ nourishment, ration cards, developing slums and offering decent public houses.

The social security offers several services to senior women such as elderly care, home services, covered insurances, new amendments to pension law, and implementation of the health insurance system in connection with the government’s vision to realize an inclusive healthcare net by the year 2030.

The social security program (Solidarity& dignity) aims to switch subsidies into an efficient channel that targets those who deserve them- the subsidies- most. Two million and 230 thousand families benefited from the program, which individually counts 9.5 million citizens 89 percent of them are women.

Here are economic empowerment and social security statistics:

- 38 million women benefited from bread subsidies

- 34 million women received food ration cards

- Ten million women received family planning supplies

- Eight million women received reproductive health services

- 2 million and 100 thousands women benefited from micro projects fund

- One million and 520 thousands women benefited from economic empowerment programs

- 825 thousands benefited from health insurances for breadwinner women programs

- Unemployment among females dropped from 24.7 percent in 2017 to 21.2 percent in 2018.
- Banks accounts for women increased from 9 percent to 29 percent in one year from 2017 to 2018

- Additionally, the president launched “100 million Healthy Lives” campaign to eliminate Hepatitis C by the year 2020 and allocated 50 thousand free insurance policies to working and disadvantaged women.

Honorable Audience

Egypt’s parliament drafted several laws in favor of women, such as harsher penalties for committing circumcision and sexual harassment crimes, criminalization of denying women inheritance, asserting the working women’s right to have four-month maternity leave. The president has ratified a new strategy to empower all Egyptian women by the year 2030.