Exacerbated by the era of Sisi .. Learn about the number of Egyptian migrants and their areas of stability

Abdel Hafez El Sawy

While the Egyptian government announces the rise in the value of GDP and its growth rates, and declares that it has spent trillions of pounds on investment in new projects, official figures come out confirming the increase in the number of migrants from Egypt abroad, by up to 70% from the situation before. The military coup in July 2013.

Official figures reveal false claims that Abdel Fattah El Sisi's major projects have a positive impact on society.

What is the value of the improvement in macroeconomic indicators, which the government is talking through the media, or some of its official reports, if this is accompanied by an increase in the number of Egyptians who had to emigrate in order to improve their standard of living, that their income in Egypt is not enough, or that they do not find jobs in Egypt.

The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) reveals through its recently published book `` Immigration in Egypt 2018 '' that the number of Egyptian immigrants abroad reached 10.2 million citizens by the end of 2017, after they were at the end of 2013 about six million citizens.

The number of immigrants is increasing after the military coup in 2013, and the increase during the period 2013-2017 about 4.2 million citizens, or 70.4%, which raises many questions, especially as Sisi promised Egyptians to improve the living and economic situation in two years.

However, the opposite is the case of Egyptians, not evidenced by the figures published by government institutions. Those who emigrated under the weight of their incomes are not enough in Egypt, amounting to 25% of the total migrants.

Also, those who migrated to improve their standard of living accounted for 34% of the total migrants, and those who emigrated due to the lack of job opportunities in Egypt accounted for 12% of the total migrants.This means that they did not find the truth of what El-Sisi announced, so they went to fulfill their needs by emigrating abroad.

Arab countries absorb about 67.4% of Egyptian immigrants abroad, while the Americas absorb 17.9% of them, and European countries comprise 10.2% of Egyptian immigrants.

Of course, the situation does not need to talk about the situation of Egyptian labor in the Gulf countries, especially the last three years, where fees on foreign workers' residences increased, as well as the cost of living, as well as problems of delayed and reduced salaries, due to economic conditions, or the dismissal of part of expatriate labor under the pretext of localization. Some functions.

Youth migration
Young people face great economic and social challenges.It is difficult for a young man to get a job after he finishes his education, as well as to consider the establishment of a new family, and the costs involved in buying a housing unit and bearing the costs of marriage.

Therefore, a large proportion of young people tend to work abroad in pursuit of the dream of family stability. The Central Agency for Public Mobilization statistics show that the percentage of youth in the age group of 25-29 years is about 23% of the total immigrants, while the age group of 30-34 years represents 17.7% of the total immigrants.

Young people find themselves driven by immigration, given what they face in the labor market in Egypt. The informal labor market is the largest absorption of new entrants, and this market has features that discourage young people to stay in Egypt, such as low wages, lack of employment contracts, and therefore no social protection, opportunities for promotion and training, and improved working conditions that enable over time. That the young man achieves his ambition in his country.

The labor market survey data in June 2019 shows that the informal sector in the labor market in Egypt comprises 46.1% of the total employed, while the formal private sector comprises 30.5%, and the government and the public sector 13.4%.

Hence, young people do not feel some kind of job stability, or get the material benefits necessary for family and community stability, so they have only immigration.

Reasons for migration
Since the mid-1970s, waves of immigration have been increasing and increasing, but the rate of increase in the number of migrants after the 2013 coup is remarkable and is paid to find out its causes.

The political side and its repercussions are one of the most important reasons that motivate Egyptian workers to emigrate, especially the youth, because they feel that the country has not yet enjoyed political and security stability, with which the economic situation can improve, and the investments capable of creating enough job opportunities in terms of numbers and working to improve the hand Or provide an appropriate environment for a balanced working relationship, whether through fair pay, or a decent work environment.

There is no will for political reform to accommodate the current state of tension in Egypt, some of which appeared in Hirak on September 20 and 26, 2019, and the violence in Sinai has not yet ceased, whether by targeting police ambushes or by government forces targeting civilians fighting there, a climate There is no hope for economic and social stability.

Austerity measures
Egypt's post-coup measures - especially after signing its agreement with the IMF in November 2016 - have led to economic stagnation and a dramatic rise in the cost of living. This has resulted in an increase in poverty rates to almost 33%, a situation that drives Egyptian workers to seek better conditions, at least to provide for the necessary necessities of life.

Al-Bushra, who is marketed by the government to the Egyptian society, was determined to conclude a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund in October, at a time when society was waiting for the Egyptian economy to emancipate from the conditions of the IMF, to see the fruit of his patience on difficult economic measures that lasted for about three years. This means that new austerity measures to be implemented by the government will make the economic situation more difficult and lead to further emigration.

The path taken by the Sisi government in directing public investments, most of which brought debts (internal and external) to projects that do not lead to jobs that are sustainable or added value that has a positive impact on the lives of individuals or the national economy, was spent lavishly on projects and bridges and the administrative capital New, real estate projects, while completely neglected productive projects, especially in the sectors of agriculture and industry.

Absence of protection programs
In sum, Egypt lacks a strategy to deal with migrant workers. Egyptian migrants are often subjected to external political and economic crises, where workers bear all the negative effects of the nature of employment contracts, their inappropriate environment, or forced or forced return, without the existence of social protection programs for these workers. Or compensate for alternative employment opportunities at home, or rehabilitation.

This neglect comes at a time when remittances to Egyptian migrants represent the largest source of foreign exchange, reaching $ 26 billion in 2017/2018, as well as moving a significant part of the economic activity in Egypt.