Parl't approves draft bill increasing pensions by 15%

CAIRO – 10 June 2019: The Parliament gave a preliminary approval on a draft law submitted by the government on the increase of pensions by 15 percent with a minimum increase of LE 150 ($9). The draft law also increases minimum pension from LE 750 to LE 900 ($53.8).

Abdel Aal, in a session on Sunday, announced postponing the final approval of the bill for next Tuesday's session, as the draft is one of the laws supplementing the constitution, and therefore requires the presence and approval of two thirds of the members at least.

The government is currently working under the direct guidance of the president to develop a plan to manage pensions in an economic way, Abd Aal said.

"The day when the government will have nothing to do with increasing pensions will come. The plan is to have a system for managing pension money in an economic way. Egypt is the only country that increases its pensions from the public treasury, and the goal is to get economic pension money management," Abdel-Al said.



In March, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi announced a number of decisions aimed at alleviating the impact of inflation on millions of citizens.

The minimum wage of public employees – who amount to 5.2 million - will rise from LE 1,200 to LE 2,000. An exceptional raise worth LE 150 will be granted to public employees to face inflation.

Pensions will increase by 15 percent with a minimum of LE 150, with the minimum pension amounting to LE 900. By passing the bill, the 15 percent increase in pensions should take into effect by July 1, 2019.

The annual raise for employees subject to the Civil Service Bill will be 7 percent of the base pay.

The exceptional raise for employees not subject to the Civil Service Bill is worth 10 percent of the base pay with a minimum of LE 75.

The president commented in Egyptian Arabic in the middle of his formal speech on the hike in prices. He called upon citizens to boycott commodities with unaffordable prices, explaining that traders will have to reduce the prices if sales plummet.

The president added that the government is exerting efforts to indirectly adjust the prices but “it is difficult in a country with a population of 120 million citizens.”