November 06, 2023

Egypt sets an example for nations with rural-urban development gaps

topic:	Sustainable Development
located:	Egypt
editor:	Bob Koigi

In Egypt, the gap between the urban and rural communities has been widening over the years, exacerbated by migration, especially of young, educated people, to urban areas in search of better lives. 

Coupled with neglect by the government and other players in development matters, rural areas need more access to essential services such as education, health, sanitation, clean water and electricity.  

Rural areas in Egypt represent an estimated 57 per cent of the total population, with agriculture being the mainstay of these regions. But the low returns of the sector, high cost of inputs, low education quality and movement of the most productive population to cities have complicated matters.

A 2019-2022 survey, for example, showed that two-thirds of poor people living in villages come from villages in Southern Egypt and that 48 per cent of them are unable to cover their basic needs.  

Alive to these disparities and their impact on development and economic growth, the North African country has decided to do something about it.  

The ambitious Decent Life project, which began its roll-out in 2019, has invested in development initiatives across Egypt. The government committed EGP 500 billion, approximately $16 billion, to the project.

According to the Egyptian Presidency's website, "the initiative provides health care, medical services, surgeries and prosthetic devices to these groups. Moreover, it aims to develop Egypt's poorest villages, according to the poverty map, provides job opportunities and supports orphan girls to get married."

Various players, including the private sector, civil society, philanthropists, research and academia, have thrown their weight behind the intervention. By embracing a holistic approach to tackling the various and urgent problems affecting the rural community, the project has taken an unprecedented path. 

Targeting 4,500 underprivileged villages and some 60 million residents, Decent Life is being rolled out in phases, with the first focusing on villages that have poverty rates above 70 per cent.  

According to a 2022 review, new facilities, such as water treatment plants, healthcare and veterinary units, and family and youth centres, have been established.

In education, more than 834 schools have been constructed, while over 1500 others have been renovated. This has led to a significant reduction in illiteracy rates. To combat unemployment, villagers are employed in milk and palm processing centres while women are trained in carpet weaving and wood carving for economic empowerment.

As the Decent Life initiative takes shape and Egyptians look to bridge the rural-urban development gap, the poignant lesson for other nations is the potential of a project to succeed through political commitment, public-private partnership, appreciating the role of civil society in keeping everyone in check and letting those the project targets to own it to for inclusivity and sustainability.  

Photo by Simon Berger.

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