Egypt's Minister of Social Solidarity Maya Morsy said three million families have exited the Takaful & Karama (Solidarity and Dignity) cash assistance program over the past decade, citing improved economic conditions such as asset ownership and small business activity.
"Each month, new families enter and others exit. We monitor eligibility continuously. If a family no longer qualifies, we remove them from the program and admit others in need," Morsy said during an appearance on the ON E television program Kalima Akhira on Saturday.
She added that around 100,000 families are found to no longer qualify each month following periodic re-evaluations conducted every three years, and are replaced by an equivalent number of newly eligible households.
The Takaful & Karama program currently supports 4.7 million families. Since its inception a decade ago, 7.7 million families have received support, Morsy said.
She emphasized the use of a centralized, comprehensive database that now covers 17 million families. It includes economic indicators, child education data, land ownership, and household appliances.
According to Morsy, this data also captures households that believe they are eligible but are not yet enrolled—from a total of 26 million applicants.
"We have robust data that lets us assess who is most in need," she said. "If a household owns a fully equipped home or farmland, they're not considered eligible."
She noted that the poverty rate in Egypt ranges between 29% and 32%, citing World Bank and Ministry of Planning figures from recent years.
Additionally,cash benefits under the program will increase to 900 Egyptian pounds (around $18) per person starting July 1 following a presidential directive, Morsy announced.
Last month, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi ratified Law No. 12 of 2025 on social protection, commonly known as the "Takaful & Karama Pension". The legislation establishes specific and strict conditions for state support under “Takaful” for every citizen who does not enjoy the social insurance system and is unable to support themselves and their families, and in cases of incapacity to work and old age.
The law outlines five categories eligible for conditional cash assistance under the Takaful program. These comprise households where women are the legal guardians of children; families of incarcerated individuals; families with a conscripted member; households whose primary breadwinner has been absent for more than six months, with official documentation; and extremely poor families not covered by the other categories.
Meanwhile, eight categories qualify for the unconditional Karama pension, including people with disabilities; individuals with severe chronic illness; elderly people, regardless of living situation; women without dependent spouses; orphans; former residents of state care homes who have reached adulthood; veteran artists, athletes, writers, and visual artists who meet the criteria; and unmarried adult women.
