Position Paper

Arab Republic of Egypt

Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee
Vulnerable groups facing Covid-19 and future pandemics
Alba Micaela Renteria Enriquez – San Antonio de Padua

The world has faced many challenges from wars to environmental disasters; the 21st century has come up with a new
one that nobody was prepared for. The current Covid-19 pandemic represents not only a challenge for several nations,
but once more, the vulnerability of certain groups is being compromised. With around 94,078 confirmed cases in The
Arab Republic of Egypt until August 1st, we are committed to fulfilling the needs of every one of our citizens. We
acknowledge that economic support is vital to combat the effects of this crisis; Egypt’s Ministry of Workforce has
allocated 2.9 million dollars to irregular workers, including women. The “Takaful and Karama” social protection
program expansion has helped with 2.3 million additional households, where 10 million people were identified in need
of social assistance. In April, the Ministry of Health has launched two hotlines to provide psychological support to
citizens at home, including senior citizens and women. With the ongoing pandemic, Egypt knows that is fundamental
to treat refugees and asylum-seekers the same as nationals in our response to Covid-19. Through the Arabiyet Elkheir
initiative, we could ensure that refugees and asylum-seekers were included in meal distributions during the holy month
of Ramadan; in this way alleviating the extra pressures, that Covid-19 represents. The Egyptian government recognizes
the importance of women participation during the process of developing measures to combat Covid-19, with the help of
the National Council for Women (NCM) and other institutions we developed the “Egypt’s Rapid Response to Women’s
Situation during the COVID-19 Outbreak’” a gender policy that can track the government efforts in including women
needs during the pandemic.
The Arab Republic of Egypt, as a founding member of the United Nations and many other international organizations,
is committed to work with the international community and with other nations to solve this crisis. Different United
Nations organs have helped Egypt to respond to the current situation, for instance, the United Nations International
Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Egypt has delivered 809,000 essential medical supplies like masks and surgical gowns to
protect healthcare workers. Financial initiatives made by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) have also
helped to raise funds and expand the production of medical masks; like the “Kemana” campaign working in cooperation
with the Egypt Foundation for Integrated Development (ENID), which is a great example of this type of approaches.
Moreover, the government of Canada and the UNDP have contributed to Egypt’s efforts to fight Covid-19, with 360,000
USD designated to screening and test capacity around the Arab country. Furthermore, the World Health Organization
(WHO) working in Africa has helped countries in this region to prepare and respond to the crisis is the most effective
way. This is the case for the “Who Health Alert”, which is a chatbot available in more than 10 languages that through
WHO has reached out to countries to provide accurate information by WhatsApp service, Egypt has been one of the
countries that include this service with a version for the deaf.
Covid-19 can be seen as an umbrella that encompasses several multifaceted subtopics. The Arab Republic of Egypt is
aware of the complexity of this matter, which is why is fully committed to taking the necessary measures to guarantee
that every people’s rights are being respected. We aim to address this issue with the “Great Pyramid” initiative, which
will help nations to effectively address the most urgent aspects regarding vulnerable groups. The first stage will be
Assessment, focusing on improving the data collection and identifying the loopholes and necessities each vulnerable
group is having, working with already existing platforms like the “World Health Platform” and others from each region.
In this phase, Regional offices will help nations in the elaboration of a report that will be drafted to analyze the use of
local laws and protocols that may be affecting vulnerable groups, also nonprofit organizations will suggest the further
amendments or recommendations. After the Assessment Phase, we will move to the Analysis, where the
recommendations will be drafted and specific instructions will be elaborate, to move into the third phase of Presentation,
where the assessment report and the recommendations will be delivered to each countries Ministries involved like the
Ministry of Health, Ministry of Women and Ministry of Minorities (or their equivalent). Having notified the countries
with these documents, we will start the Execution phase, where every nation will have total responsibility of adopting
those recommendations or adapting them to their local laws and procedures. The last phase of this initiative is the
Monitoring phase, where periodic reviews will be suggested and willing to work with the “International Development
Law Organization” (IDLO) and UNDP branch of monitoring. In order to ensure the viability of this program, we are
delegating new responsibilities to the existent organs that work in this field and each region, having in mind that these
actions to track the progress of every nation should be reinforced. The 21st century has come up with this new challenge,
but the vulnerability of certain groups in our societies has always existed, as the International Community, there is an
increasing need to ensure that every citizen’s rights are fully respected, and Egypt will work towards an effective
approach to assure a long-term solution for every nation.
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