Source: Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
In times of major social crisis, a gendered and feminist perspective exposes the priorities and biases of public policy. It is also an important lens for evaluating the capacity of policies -or lack thereof- to meet the needs of women and vulnerable social groups as a whole, while highlighting their disproportionate impact on these groups, which constitute the majority of the population. For these reasons, today we launch a gender tracker to monitor the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on women and other vulnerable social groups in Egypt. We hope that a gendered perspective will allow opportunities to remedy measures that do not consider gendered impacts or avoid public policies that could harm certain  groups 

Our analysis sides with groups that are typically sidelined in the design of public policies, including women and girls, the pooror people at risk of poverty, people who are sick or living with a chronic illness or disability, individuals whose sexual orientation and/or gender identity does not conform to socially-sanctioned norms, prisoners, migrants, stateless persons, and undocumented people. We will provide regular updates and commentary on public policies to combat the health, economic, and social impacts of COVID-19, offering recommendations aiming to mitigate any adverse impact of government measures, and to protect a majority of the populace—particularly women—from any ramifications of these policies. We will regularly update the tracker with inputs in line with relevant developments. And we invite you to join us by offering gender-focused analyses and recommendations for public policy. We begin with four proposed measures to address priorities that were absent from the government coronavirus package or received only cursory treatment.

Who most deserves loan repayment accommodations?

In November 2019, Egypt submitted its national report for the universal periodic review to the UN Human Rights Council, in which Egyptian representatives highlighted that 69 percent of beneficiaries of microloans were women, or more than 2 million1 of the 3.1 million beneficiaries2. On 22 March 2020, in order to address the anticipated impacts of COVID-19, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) issued a decree automatically deferring credit payments for individuals and companies and cancelling commissions and late fee payments3. Since only 27 percent of women over the age of 15 have a bank account, and less than 2 percent of women ages 15–49 own a home, these measures will have a very limited impact on the vast majority of Egyptian women. The CBE accommodations apply to personal bank loans for the purchase of cars and housing for personal use, as well as credit card debt5. Yet, 93 percent of female business owners in Egypt have business capital of less than LE10,000 (~ 635 USD).

Although the Minister of Trade and Industry, Nevine Gamaa stated on 17 March 2020 that the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise Development Agencyunder her ministry would support small businesses facing the challenge of the coronavirus epidemic. Following the CBE decree of 22 March, microfinance firms refused to treat these small businesses equally with other businesses benefiting from loan deferments. In fact, Al-Mal newspaper reported that microbusiness owners received text messages from financers and loan associations reminding them of due monthly loan payment. Some of the business owners said that the financing firms refused to apply CBE decrees, claiming that microbusinesses were exempt and that the directives did not apply to microloan financers. One financing firm said it would “consider every client who seeks a loan payment deferment on its own initiative, but that the final decision would be made based on very strict criteria.”

In the midst of this crisis, the state should protect incomes and businesses of more vulnerable groups. At the very least, it should allow them to benefit from the CBE easing measures offered to other companies and individuals. Working through the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA), it should make these loans subject to the same criteria for payment and credit accommodations provided by CBE decrees and any future decrees it may issue offering assistance or benefits to borrowers; by issuing a clear decree automatically deferring payments. At the same time, the FRA should ensure that all microfinance firms and associations comply with the decree. This is especially urgent since, as noted in the Egyptian government report to the UN Human Rights Council, most microloan beneficiaries are women and in many cases they were targeted for loans as women in line with the national women's empowerment strategy.  Many of these women are heads of households—3.3 million families in Egypt are headed by women11—and they and their families deserve state protection from the impact of COVID-19 on their income, particularly the poorest and most vulnerable among them.

Is home the safest shelter for everyone?

As the world faces the threat of COVID-19, the government urges people to stay at home. Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli and the president have issued several decrees to minimize street traffic and workplace crowding, first and foremost by instituting a partial curfew. Long-term home isolation raises several issues for women, particularly the potential for a spike in domestic violence. 

There are no accurate, up-to-date figures on domestic violence in Egypt, but The Economic Cost of Gender Based Violence Survey Egypt 2015,  conducted by the National Council for Women (NCW) in concert with the UNFPA, found: 

• Nearly 7.9 million women in Egypt experience some form of violence every year, whether from a husband, fiancé, or relative, or strangers in public places. 
• Nearly 5.6 million women are exposed to violence from a husband or fiancé every year. 
• Nearly 2.4 million women are injured as a result of violence from a husband or fiancé. 
• Nearly18 percent of Egyptian women ages 18–64 have experienced physical or sexual violence since the age of 18 from a family member or their immediate environment. 

A father is responsible in 3 percent of cases of sexual violence against women, while a brother is responsible in 1 percent of cases. 

These abuses take place while there is no law or provision in the Penal Code that specifically addresses domestic violence. On the contrary, there are statutes that undermine women’s rights in this regard and overlook abuses women may be facing. For example, Article 60 of the Penal Code states, “The provisions of the Penal Code shall not apply to any act committed with good intention, pursuant to a right established in Islamic law [sharia].” Gender-based violence can therefore be justified as being undertaken to “discipline” women, whether by family, husbands, or others in their immediate environment.

As such, home isolation may expose women and girls to more violence, especially with the lack of adequate means for protection. We call on the  Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Social Solidarity, and the NCW to prepare for this containment period by: 

Announcing a joint plan of action between Ministry of Interior, NCW, and National Council for Motherhood and Childhood to tackle domestic violence against women and children during the current crisis. 

Extending operating hours of the free hotline (15115) run bythe NCW to 24/7., Besides,referring complaints from women and girls directly to the designated violence against women units under/in the Ministry of Interior, which also has numbers for the receipt of complaints (0112-697-7222, 0112-697-7333, 0112-697-7444). 

Equipping and regularly disinfecting the Ministry of Social Solidarity shelter for women victims of domestic violence. 

Directing the human rights division in all police stations to cooperate with women lodging complaints of violence and show zero tolerance for perpetrators of violence regardless of their relationship to the victim. 

Establishing a campaign by the Ministry of Social Solidarity  in collaboration with the Ministry of Interior, to send SMS messages to every woman and girl advising how to file a complaint in case of violence and providing them with necessary hotlines. 

To avoid recurrent contraceptives and RhoGAM shortages

On a regular day, and especially amid any economic or financial turmoil in Egypt, there are recurring shortages of contraception, including emergency contraceptives. To preempt any crisis in family planning clinics, health centers, public hospitals, or private pharmacies, we stress the importance of ensuring continued accessibility. There are several reasons for these shortages, including: 

The high cost of raw imported active ingredients  needed to manufacture contraceptives, which has affected production in Egyptian pharmas in the past.

Delayed imports due to late import approvals (from the Central Pharmacy Administration) or because drugs sit in customs for extended time periods awaiting clearance. Since contraceptives contain hormones, they are held to allow the Pharmaceutical Regulatory Authority time to analyze them before releasing them to the market. 

Lack of a holistic market production plan that takes account of emergency situations, in which the Ministry of Health would cooperate with pharmaceutical companies to avoid any shortage or unavailability. 

Smuggling of contraceptives out of the country. 

We therefore believe Ministry of Health needs a comprehensive plan to ensure the availability of contraceptives, both subsidized and unsubsidized, and to regulate market prices to ensure the crisis is not taken advantage of, and this by: 

• Securing A 6-month strategic stock of contraceptives, including subsidized emergency contraception, family planning clinics, health units, and government hospitals, which are utilizedby 57 percent of all contraceptive users. 
• Tightening oversight of non-subsidized contraceptives in pharmacies, which are accessed by 43 percent of contraceptive users, and issuing directives to pharmacies not to exploit the crisis by manipulating contraceptive stocks or prices, with penalties for price fixers. 
• Facilitating all red tape blocking import permits for pharmaceutical factories, to clarify the responsibilities of government bodies and the private sector during the current crisis. In order to prevent companies from justifying shortages by pointing fingers at the Ministry of Health. Also, companies should  have legal liability in the event of a shortage or unavailability. 
• Combating smuggling and banning the export of contraceptives of all kinds.witnessed shortages of RhoGAM16, which is at times urgently needed by pregnant women and new mothers. In February 2017, the Health Ministry announced RohGAM availability at regional blood centers and outlets for the Holding Company for Biological Preparations and Vaccines (VACSERA). But obtaining an injection at a subsidized price—the drug is extremely costly—requires documentation that can be difficult to obtain in a timely manner, especially considering it is an emergency drug. This is particularly critical in the current context, which is placing severe stress on all medical facilities. We therefore urge the Health Ministry to preempt the crisis by ensuring sufficient stocks of RhoGAM and facilitating procedures to dispense it in these difficult circumstances, while tightening oversight of pricing and provision at private pharmacies, to ensure that women do not fall victim to red tape and price fixing.

 

 

Perinatal services must remain a priority

In responding to questions about whether pregnant women are more at-risk for COVID-19, the World Health Organization states that based on limited available data and relatively limited knowledge of the novel coronavirus, pregnant women do not appear to be at special risk in the event of infection. But the WHO stresses the paucity of research on the topic, adding, “However, due to changes in their bodies and immune systems, we know that pregnant women can be badly affected by some respiratory infections.” WHO recommends:

Pregnant women should be prioritized for virus testing if they exhibit symptoms. 

Infection with COVID-19 does not require cesarean section, which should only be performed based on medical necessity. 

It is vital to ensure the continuity of prenatal, natal, and postnatal services despite the pressure on health facilities, to prevent additional indirect crisis-related deaths, as occurred in other countries during the Ebola epidemic.

Based on these WHO recommendations, we urge the Egyptian Health Ministry:19

• Produce audiovisual materials for pregnant women to apprise them of measures to prevent contagion and reassure them about the impact of the virus on them and their newborns. These materials should be aired on television and radio as well as social media, and information provided to pregnant women and mothers health care facilities. 
• Ensure perinatal continue in designated places, to avoid the erosion of services in hospitals under the additional pressure of COVID-19; take preemptive measures to ensure that women are able to access prenatal and postnatal services. 
• Ensure that the method of delivery is based on medical need and that cesarean section is not chosen on no medical ground, even in the event of infection with COVID-19, while providing the necessary protection for medical staff. 
• Pregnant women showing symptoms of COVID-19 should be prioritized for testing, pursuant to WHO recommendations. 
• Support family planning units and health offices that provide services to women. These units should be at the forefront of preventive measures existing health infrastructure including family planning units, should offer treatment and preventive services. We urge the Health Ministry to support family planning units and local health departments with all necessary needs, drugs, medical supplies, and medical staff needed to offer perinatal services.