NCW head votes on constitutional amendments, urges women to participate

CAIRO – 20 April 2019: Maya Morsy, head of the National Council for Women (NCW) cast her ballot in a referendum on a set of proposed constitutional amendments, in a polling station in Giza's Dokki district.

Morsy called on Egyptian women to take part in the referendum.

The Parliament earlier approved the amendments which include guaranteeing women at least 25 percent of the seats (at least 112 seats) of the House of Representatives.


Women voting in the referendum on April 20, 2019

Since the establishment of the Egyptian House, the number of women parliamentarians has never reached such percentage.

One year after Egyptian women were granted the right to vote in 1956, Rawia Atiya and Amina Shoukri became the first two women parliamentarians in Egypt's history. The women's quota has then increased over years to reach about 15 percent in the current 2015 parliament.

Also, in 1962, late President Gamal Abdel Nasser appointed Hikmat Abu Zeid as minister for social affairs, to be the first minister in the country's modern history. The Social Solidarity Ministry is currently chaired by Ghada Wali, who has remained in her post for three consecutive cabinets.

For the first time in Egypt, eight women have got ministerial portfolios, including ministers of investment, environment, tourism, health, planning, immigration and culture.

In December, Minister of Immigration Nabila Makram said that President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi will attach special importance to women's role in Africa after assuming the African Union (AU) presidency in 2019.

Moreover, Hala Zayed, who has served as health minister since June 2018, said that for five years the ministry has adopted many programs and policies to improve women's health, asserting that women represent 50 percent of the employees in the headquarters of the Ministry of Health.

Zayed said that 30 percent of the vital ministries in Egypt are headed by women, as many women in the country have the expertise that qualify them for leadership positions, in light of the political leadership's keenness to support and empower women in all fields.

She added that Egyptian women nowadays are breadwinners for about 35 percent of the Egyptian families.

Niven al-Misiri, CEO and managing director of Ahli United Bank-Egypt, said that Egypt is working to implement the United Nations guidelines to achieve justice for women in all its institutions.