Irregular workers compose 60% of employed Egyptians: Social Solidarity Minister

CAIRO – 21 May 2024: Minister of Social Solidarity Nevine al-Qabaj made key statements Tuesday on irregular workers during a workshop held on social insurance, which covers solely eight percent of the Egyptian workforce.

The minister referred to the data of the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) showing that the workforce grew by one percent in Q1 of 2024 recording 31.1 million individuals.

The number of the employed is 29.2 million, including 18.7 million who work in the informal sector, mostly in the fields of agriculture, fishing, constructions, mining, and transport.  

As such, irregular workers compose 60 percent of the employed in Egypt, which is a high percentage compared to other regional and non-regional countries. The minister quoted ILO figures showing that irregular workers represent 59 percent in Tunisia, 44 percent in Jordan, 34 percent in Turkey, 13.6 percent in UK, and 8.2 percent in Sweden.

Minister Qabaj clarified that the size of the informal sector increased majorly starting the nineties in the aftermath of privatization, then as a consequence of the 2008 financial crisis, and later due to COVID-19 and other global crises.

The minister pointed out that irregular workers make up only 18 percent of subscribers to social insurance. The main reasons are fluctuating income, absence of willingness to pay the subscription whether on the end of the worker or the employer, and lack of awareness of the importance of social insurance.

The social solidarity minister highlighted that the pandemic was an opportunity to give more care to irregular workers as they had to better included in social safety networks. She also showcased that the recovery - from the economic implications - of irregular blue-collar workers was much faster than their white-collar counterparts.