Nov 29, 2023
Wednesday 11-29-2023
Within the framework of unifying the state’s efforts to dry up the sources of debt in Egypt, the Misr Al-Kheir Foundation, in cooperation with the Ministry of Social Solidarity, and with the participation of a number of civil society organizations working to relieve the distress of those in debt, held an expanded round table to review the steps taken in the case so far, and present future moves, in the presence of Counselor Mohamed El-Gamari, legal advisor to the Ministry of Social Solidarity, Chairman of the National Committee. For those in debt, Dr. Mohamed Rifai, CEO of the Misr Al-Kheir Foundation, Dr. Mohamed Mamdouh, Head of the NGO Development Sector at the Misr Al-Kheir Foundation, and Dr. Hanan Al-Derbashi, Head of the Indebted Sector at the Misr Al-Kheir Foundation.
The CEO of the Misr El Kheir Foundation said in his speech today, Wednesday, during the round table organized by the Misr El Kheir Foundation under the title “The Role of NGOs in Draining the Sources of Grief in Egypt... Policies... Implementation Mechanisms,” that the issue of debtors does not only affect one person, but rather destroys an entire family. Therefore, we find this issue receiving great attention from the President of the Republic to confront this phenomenon and eliminate it, and dry up the sources of grief to maintain family cohesion and cohesion. And social.
Dr. Mohamed Rifai, CEO of the Misr Al-Khair Foundation, confirmed that the issue of debtors and female debtors receives very great attention and support from President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, President of the Republic, through serious work to eliminate the phenomenon of debtors and dry up the sources of the debt, pointing out that the debtors’ sector in the Misr Al-Khair Foundation is working to monitor the cases of debtors, support them, and raise awareness of the seriousness. fine, and work to achieve this through.A legal team, support from the Ministries of Justice and Interior, and developing the work of civil society organizations in this regard.
Mohamed El-Gamary, legal advisor to the Minister of Social Solidarity and Chairman of the National Committee for Debtors, said that holding this round table in which the Ministry of Social Solidarity participates, along with a number of civil society institutions working in the field of relieving the distress of debtors, led by the Misr Al-Khair Foundation and the Al-Masry Foundation, comes based on the Ministry’s vision of establishing an integrated society to achieve economic solidarity for all its members, explaining that the issue is important. Of great importance to the presidency, the Ministry has worked during the past period to establish a social safety network for citizens, raise their standard of living and encourage the private sector to play its role in this regard.
Al-Gammari added during the roundtable that the Ministry is cooperating with the Ministry of Interior to protect the debtors’ protection through the Sanad initiative, and also formed a committee for male and female debtors that aimed to determine the definition of male and female debtors, but it concluded that the legal amendment was useless at the present time.Al-Gammari indicated that the committee has come a long way in dealing with the issue, as an account was opened. To collect donations at Nasser Social Bank for this issue, work is still underway to launch the “Yusr” platform, linking all those working on this issue at all levels and its legal, economic, awareness, media, and social dimensions.
One of the most important initiatives that the Ministry of Social Solidarity is working on in coordination with civil society institutions, most notably the Misr El Kheir Foundation, during the current period, according to Al-Gamari, is to focus on creating collective projects to confront the phenomenon, studying the provision of alternatives by providing micro-credit, and investing in civil society efforts to monitor Al-Gharmin’s distinguished products in each governorate and work to market them.
Dr. Hanan Al-Derbashi, Head of the Debtors Sector at the Misr El Kheir Foundation, confirmed that the phenomenon of debtors is not related to women only, but rather includes males to a greater extent. This is what studies and the Foundation’s database have shown, where we found that 68% of those in debt are males while only 32% are females, pointing out that the Foundation covers all governorates and we found 44% of those in debt in Lower Egypt and 46% in Upper Egypt. Al-Darbashi indicated that, as of last July, Misr Al-Khair was able to relieve the distress of 75,000 debtors, including 7,000 debtors without lawsuits, explaining that the reasons for the fines are economic and social reasons through their undertaking micro-projects without feasibility studies, or spending on a sick family member, or meeting the family’s basic living needs, and social reasons such as the high cost of marriage.
Dr. Mohamed Mamdouh, Head of the NGO Development Sector at the Misr El Kheir Foundation, said that the Misr El Kheir Foundation works on the issue of debtors through two main axes: the axis of relieving distress, and the axis of drying up the sources of grief. He added: We have 14 field offices and we have a large group of social researchers at the republic level. We ascertain the extent of the case’s deserving of assistance and work to relieve its distress and assist it. In the second axis, drying up the sources of grief, we are making multiple partnerships. We spread the idea of confronting the debt and the danger of signing trust receipts, and within 6 months we raised awareness for six thousand individuals and trained 500 civil society organizations. We are working on a family economic empowerment program and see the extent of the availability of expertise and skills to implement the project, indicating that this meeting comes within the framework of the activities of the Observatory for the Sustainability of Civil Organizations of the Arab Center for the Sustainability of Civil Work.
For her part, Dr. Iqbal Al-Samalouti, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Misr Al-Kheir Foundation, said that the role of civil society organizations in the issue of debtors is very important, especially their role in raising awareness, and informing citizens of the legal seriousness of the matter in a simple way, so that they do not fall into the cycle of debt again. Al-Samalouti expressed her appreciation for the contribution of the Adult Education and Illiteracy Eradication Authority in participating in efforts to dry up the sources of the debt, stressing the importance of the Literacy Eradication Authority’s communication with the group. Targeted, to educate and educate them, which has a great impact in preventing many from falling into love.
