6K former slum dwellers in Egypt seek government-funded treatment

CAIRO – 29 December 2021: General Manager of Preventive Programs at the Addiction Treatment Fund Ibrahim Askar stated in a phone-in Wednesday that 6,000 former slum dwellers, who moved to alternative housing neighborhoods, Asmarat, Mahrousa, Bashayer Al Kheir, and Istabl Antar, sought in 2021 the free-of-charge treatment offered by the fund.

Askar added that awareness campaigns targeting 40,000 families in those neighborhoods took place. He elaborated that workers at the fund had been concerned that the inhabitants may not be accepting of those campaigns but they made community members participate, so they were welcomed, particularly on the part of women.

As for the type of drugs abused by the patients treated, they were hash, tramadol, strox, and Al Chapo. The official further noted, "Heroin was a surprise to us as it came on top among the drugs used by such people who belong to the low-income bracket, and who struggle to pay rent, given its high prices?"