For many years, Upper Egyptian women have suffered from some inherited customs and traditions, which have marginalized them and kept them away from participating in the arena of political and social life.
After that, and specifically with the launch of the 2017 Women’s Year, Egypt witnessed fundamental changes in the conditions of women in general and Upper Egypt women in particular. It was empowered at various levels, assumed leadership positions, and was supported by the state with a strong legislative umbrella that fought those legacies and overcame obstacles. The report reviews the most important axes of women’s empowerment in Upper Egypt.
The report of the National Council for Women on following up on the role of ministries, universities, and various agencies in implementing the national strategy for the empowerment of Egyptian women in 2030 shows the proportions of women’s representation in leadership positions in the governorates of Upper Egypt in 2020.
A study by the Egyptian Center for Thought and Studies revealed that the Egyptian state has sought during the past few years to improve mechanisms for empowering women in leadership positions and enhancing their performance, especially in Upper Egypt governorates, in which women’s representation in such positions has decreased.
The highest representation of women was in Assiut governorate at 40%, followed by Minya governorate at 40%. 31%. Some governorates in Upper Egypt still need some interventions to raise the proportion of women’s representation in leadership positions, according to the nature of each governorate.
Full support and unprecedented interest directed by the Egyptian state to support Upper Egypt women and empower them economically, after overcoming all obstacles and providing them with all necessary support, which was evident in the following:
Females accounted for 52% of the total financing for small and micro projects directed to the Upper Egypt regions, compared to 48% of the total financing for males.
Launching the “Muzzle” initiative, which was a model for cooperation with international institutions represented by the United Nations Development Program and civil society organizations through the “Nida” Foundation, the Alternative Finance Laboratory, and the “Naya” Foundation, to involve women in Upper Egypt in the production of masks as part of the community efforts to combat the pandemic Corona.
Launching the “Girls Empowerment” project in Upper Egypt, in cooperation between the Egyptian Foundation for Integrated Development “Al-Nida” and the Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services, funded by the United States Agency for International Development for $3 million, which aims to achieve development in the areas most in need of services in Upper Egypt, where it will benefit Minya and Qena governorates.
The Minister of International Cooperation announced that about 16.8 thousand women have been trained in Upper Egypt in the fields of agriculture and the development of special skills related to Egyptian crafts, in more than 70 villages of Upper Egypt.
