Egypt

Key findings in 2015

Percentage of respondents who agree with the following statements	Egypt	SEMED	Transition region	Western Europe
Economic situation good or excellent	34	27	22	34
Economic situation in the country improving	64	44	29	36
Economic situation in the area or city improving	39	35	32	35
Good time to find a job	34	27	25	34
Comfortable living on present income	14	15	17	36

“SEMED” refers to the average of four countries: Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia. “Western Europe” refers to the average of five comparator countries: France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Regional averages in the country assessments are based on population-weighted averages of the country scores.

 

Satisfaction with the economic situation and with personal circumstances

34 per cent of Egyptians believe that economic conditions in their country at the time of the survey were “good” or “excellent”. This figure is higher than the SEMED and the transition region averages (27 and 22 per cent, respectively) and compares well with the western European average. Besides, 64 per cent of Egyptians believe that their national economy was improving in 2015, compared to a SEMED average of 44 per cent, a transition region average of 29 per cent, and a western European average of 36 per cent. In contrast, only 39 per cent of Egyptians believe that the economic situation in their area or city was improving in 2015. About 34 per cent of Egyptians think that, at the time of the survey, it was a good time to find a job. This figure compares well with the western European average and is above both the SEMED (27 per cent) and the transition region averages (25 per cent). However, only 14 per cent of Egyptians state that they are living comfortably on their present income.

25 per cent of respondents report that they are satisfied with their lives. This figure is below the averages in the SEMED region (35 per cent), the transition region (43 per cent), and western Europe (74 per cent). On the upside, 68 per cent of respondents believe that in about five years’ time, they will be more satisfied with their lives. This level of optimism compares well with the SEMED average and is higher than both the transition region and Western Europe averages (55 per cent and 41 per cent, respectively).

 

Trust in institutions

Trust in national and democratic institutions is relatively strong in Egypt. 82 per cent of respondents trust the courts and think that there is press/media freedom in their country. Similarly, 83 per cent trust the Egyptian government. 76 per cent of respondents also believe that free and fair elections take place in Egypt. Collectively, these figures are above the SEMED and the transition region averages.

 

Channels of communication

Mobile phone usage is widespread in Egypt. 85 per cent of Egyptians use a mobile phone to make and receive personal calls. This share is only slightly below the averages for the SEMED region, the transition region, and the western European comparators (88, 90, and 92 per cent, respectively). Moreover, 21 per cent of Egyptian respondents report that they have a landline telephone in their homes. This figure lies above the SEMED average of 17 per cent, but well below the transition region (47 per cent) and the western European averages (78 per cent). Access to the internet is very low in Egypt, with only 21 per cent of respondents having access to the internet in their homes. Although this figure has increased by 9 percentage points since 2011, it is still substantially lower than the SEMED, transition region, and the western European averages (41, 63, and 90 per cent, respectively). Additional results show that women are less likely to use the internet than men in Egypt.

 

Self-assessed health

60 per cent of Egyptians agree or strongly agree that their physical health is near perfect. Respondents in the upper income group are more likely to report to be in near perfect health (67 per cent) than their counterparts in the lower and middle income brackets (56 and 59 per cent, respectively). This figure compares well with the SEMED region as a whole (64 per cent) and is above the Western European (57 per cent) and transition region (52 per cent) averages.

 

Quality of public services

Satisfaction with the quality of public services in Egypt ranges from 34 per cent for affordable housing to 65 per cent for the public transportation system and air quality. Satisfaction levels compare well with the SEMED region but are lower than the corresponding figures in the transition region (except for roads) and western Europe.

 

Social and economic mobility

88 per cent of Egyptians believe that people can get ahead in life by working hard. This figure is higher than both the western European (81 per cent) and transition region (62 per cent) averages. There is little variation across different gender, age and income groups.

 

Gender and inclusion

76 per cent of Egyptians believe that “women are treated with respect and dignity” in their country – a 7 percentage points increase compared to 2011. The data show little variation across age, gender and income brackets.

Only 42 per cent of Egyptians believe that their city or area is a good place for immigrants. This figure is well below the three regional averages: SEMED (53 per cent), transition region (57 per cent), and western Europe (79 per cent). On the bright side, compared to 2011, this figure has registered a significant increase from 26 per cent to 42 per cent.

 

Satisfaction with the government

52 per cent of respondents are satisfied with their government’s efforts to assist the poor. This is higher than the corresponding figures for the SEMED region (46 per cent), the western European countries (44 per cent), and the transition region (31 per cent). When it comes to the government’s efforts to protect the environment, 44 per cent of respondents report to be satisfied as opposed to 47 per cent in the transition region, 48 per cent in the SEMED region, and 58 per cent in western Europe.

 

Civic engagement

Only 5 per cent of Egyptians have volunteered in an organization during the month before the survey. This figure is lower than the corresponding levels of SEMED (9 per cent), the transition region (16 per cent), and western Europe (24 per cent). The proportion of respondents who donated money to a charity in the month before the survey is higher: 21 per cent have – an increase of 7 percentage points compared to 2011.