Key Challenges for children in Egypt
- Currently there are over 200,000 refugees and asylum-seekers living in Egypt, the vast majority fleeing from Syria.
- Sexual harassment and gender-based violence continues to be a serious problem for girls and young women, especially in urban areas.
- Over a quarter of the population lives below the poverty line.
- Seventeen percent of girls are married before their 18th birthday and 2% are married before the age of 15.
How your support is helping create safer cities for girls in Egypt
Girls in Cairo are often harassed on their way to school — on public transport, when passing local businesses, or by boys or men waiting at the school gates. Our Safer Cities program is empowering girls and young women to work with their communities and the authorities to make their city a safer place. The program is also equipping girls with the skills they need to protect themselves against harassment, and encouraging them to speak out if they are harassed.
“By raising awareness among young people through Safer Cities, we’re creating a future where no one will have to drop out of school or be harassed,” explains Donia, a participant of Safer Cities in Cairo. “Girls have the right to an education too. We have the right to do everything boys do.”