Report 1

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First published 2023
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Printed in Egypt
Foreword
Egypt has a long and generous history at the crossroads of Africa, Europe, and the Middle East as a transit and a desti-
nation country for the forcibly displaced.
Today it hosts 289,000 registered refugees and asylum-seekers. Exactly half originate from Syria, while others have ar-
rived from Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, and Yemen. The majority live in Greater Cairo, Alexandria, and Damietta.
This study is an attempt to survey and better understand the socio-economic characteristics of these vulnerable popu-
lations.
Its aims are practical: to better assist a social protection response that allows forcibly displaced communities to fulfil their
potential and better contribute to the prosperity of Egypt.
It is the result of a collaboration between ILO and UNHCR through the Prospects partnership in Egypt, and has only been
made possible through the continued and generous support of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
For that we express our gratitude, and to all stakeholders, including the Government of Egypt, who continue to work
tirelessly on behalf of the forcibly displaced and their communities in Egypt.
PROSPECTS is a Netherlands-led partnership between the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the International La-
bour Organization (ILO), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), UNICEF to operationalize the humanitarian development nex-
us, creating strong partnerships between humanitarian and development actors to leverage comparative advantages,
improve coordination and efficiency to boost their overall impact for forcibly displaced persons and host communities.
The objective of PROSPECTS in Egypt is to improve the living standards and inclusiveness of refugees, asylum-seekers,
and vulnerable host communities, by contributing to the expansion of socio-economic opportunities through better ed-
ucation and mainstreamed protection interventions. With a geographical focus on Greater Cairo, Alexandria, and Dami-
etta, PROSPECTS Egypt works within three main pillars: (i) Education and Learning; (ii) Employment with dignity; and (iii)
Protection and Inclusion.
Dr. Hanan Hamdan

UNHCR Representative to the Arab Republic
of Egypt and to the League of Arab States
Contents
Foreword 3
Contents 4
List of Figures 6
List of Tables 7
Executive summary 8
Acknowledgments 11
1. Introduction 12
1.1 Objectives 13
1.2 Methodology 13
1.2.1 Sample design and selection 13

1.2.2 Sampling weights 14
1.2.3 Questionnaire design 15
1.2.4 Data collection 15
2. Respondents’ background characteristics 16
2.1 Gender, age, nationality 16

2.2 Duration of stay in Egypt 17
2.3 Geographic mobility 18
2.4 Educational attainment 19
2.5 Literacy and numeracy 20
2.6 ICT use 21
2.7 Dwelling 22
2.8 Cost of rent 22
2.9 Mean household size 24
3. Incomes 26
3.1 Sources of earnings 26

3.2 Main source of income 27
3.3 Mean household income 28
3.4 Mean household income quartiles 29
3.5 Mean per capita income 30
3.6 Mean income from various sources 31
4. Employment 34
4.1 Employment status 34

4.2 Employment rates 35
4.3 Unemployment rates 36
4.4 Formal versus informal employment 37
4.5 Current occupation 38
4.5.1 Current occupation by gender 39
4.5.2 Current occupation and prior occupation in country of origin 40
4.5.3 Previous employment experience in the country of origin 42
4.5.4 Skills level 42
4.6 Sector of activity 44

4.7 Mean working hours 45
4.8 Underemployment (time-related) 47
4.9 Work benefits 47
4.10 Job search 48
4.11 Sources of help in obtaining the current job 49
4.12 Reasons for not searching for paid jobs 49
4.13 Challenges in running businesses in Egypt 51
5. Skills and qualifications 52
5.1 Language skills 52

5.2 Computer skills 54
5.3 Job training 55
5.4 Work experience 56
5.5 Respondents’ skills compared with required skills 57
6. Access to and demand for services 58
6.1 Financial services 58
6.1.1 Bank accounts 58

6.1.2 Perception about available sources of loans 59
6.2 Youth centres 60

6.3 Literacy and Arabic language programmes 61
6.4 Vocational training programmes 61
6.5 Freedom of movement in Egypt 62
6.6 Most needed services 63
6.6.1 By country of origin 63

6.6.2 By gender 64
7. Community inclusion 66
7.1 Reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum 66
7.1.1 By country of origin 67
7.2 Discrimination 67
7.3 Access to public services 69
8. Conclusion and recommendations 70

List of Figures
4.5.1 Current occupation by gender 34
4.5.2 Current occupation and prior occupation in country of origin 35
4.5.3 Previous employment experience in the country of origin 37
4.5.4 Skills level 37
4.6 Sector of activity 39

4.7 Mean working hours 40
4.8 Underemployment (time-related) 42
Figure 1. Selected socio-economic indicators (%). 17
4.9 Work benefits 42
Figure
4.10 Job2.search
Duration of stay in Egypt in years (%). 18
43
Figure 3. Geographic mobility and reasons
4.11 Sources of help in obtaining the current job for staying in the current place of residence (%). 19
44
Figure
4.12 4. Educational
Reasons attainment
for not searching for(%).
paid jobs 20
44
Figure
4.13 5. Literacyinand
Challenges numeracy
running (%). in Egypt
businesses 20
46
Figure 6. Mobile phones ownership and Internet access (%). 21
Figure
5. Skills7.and
Type of dwelling (%).
qualifications 22
48
Figure 8. Mean monthly rent paid in EGP by country of origin and region. 23
Figure
5.1 9. Opinion
Language skillsabout the monthly rent by country of origin and region. 23
48
Figure 10. Mean
5.2 Computer skills household size by country of origin and region. 24
50
Figure
5.3 Job 11. Sources of refugees’ household earnings (%).
training 26
51
Figure
5.4 Work 12.experience
Main source of income by country of origin (%). 28
52
Figure
5.5 13. Mean household
Respondents’ income
skills compared (EGP).
with required skills 29
53
Figure 14. Mean household income quartiles (%). 30
Figure
6. Access15.toMean
andper capitafor
demand income (EGP).
services 31
54
Figure 16.A. Mean monthly household income from wages and salaries and charity (EGP). 32
Figure
6.1 16.B. Mean
Financial services monthly per capita income from wages and salaries and charity (EGP). 32
54
Figure 17. Employment status (%). 35
Figure
6.1.118. Employment
Bank accounts rates (%). 36
54
Figure
6.1.219. Unemployment
Perception rates according
about available sourcestoofthe standard and broad definitions (%).
loans 37
55
Figure 20. Percentages of employed refugees with work contract. 38
Figure
6.2 Youth21.centres
Current occupation (%). 39
56
Figure
6.3 22. Current
Literacy and Arabic occupation
language by programmes
gender (%). 40
57
Figure
6.4 23. Current
Vocational occupation
training programmesby country of origin (%). 40
57
Figure
6.5 24. Current
Freedom occupation
of movement by country of origin (%).
in Egypt 41
58
Figure 25. Number of respondents by occupation in home country (H) and in Egypt (E). 41
6.6.1
Figure 26.ByPercentages
country of originof employed refugees in Egypt and country of origin. 59
42
Figure 27.A. Work in country of origin by skills level. 43
6.6 Most
Figure needed
27.B. Workservices
in Egypt by skills level. 59
43
Figure 28. Number of respondents by skill level of occupation in home country (H) and in Egypt (E). 44
6.6.2
Figure 29.BySector
gender of activity (%). 60
45
Figure 30. Mean working hours per week for working refugees. 46
7. Community
Figure 31. MeanInclusion
working hours per week for working refugees by gender. 62
46
Figure 32. Percentages of employed refugees working less than 40 hours per week and willing
7.1 Reasons
to work more for choosing Egypt for asylum
hours. 62
47
Figure 33. Percentages of working refugees enjoying some work benefits (%). 48
7.1.1
Figure 34.ByDuration
country of of job
origin
search (%). 61
48
Figure 35. Sources of help obtaining the current job. 49
7.2 Discrimination
Figure 36. Reasons for not searching for a paid job (%). 61
50
7.3 Access to public services
Figure 37. Challenges in running businesses in Egypt. 65
51
Figure 38.A. Spoken languages. 53
Conclusion
Figure 38.B. andCan recommendations
Improving language skills provide you with better job opportunities in Egypt? 66
53
Figure 39.A. Level of computer skills. 54
Figure 39.B. Can improving computer skills provide you with better job opportunities in Egypt? 55
Figure 40.A. Have you ever received job training to improve your skills? 56
Figure 40.B. What type of training did you receive? 56
Figure 41. Years of work experience for currently employed refugees (%). 57
Figure 42. Respondent’s skills compared with required skills at work (%). 57
Figure 43. Percentages of refugees with bank accounts in Egypt. 59
Figure 44.A. Can you apply for a loan, other than from relatives, if you need to? (%). 59
Figure 44.B. Perceived available sources of loans (%). 60
Figure 45. Are you allowed to join a youth centre and use its facilities? (%). 60
Figure 46. Percentages of refugees who know about literacy and Arabic language programmes. 61
Figure 47. Do refugees have freedom of movement in Egypt? (%). 62
Figure 48. Do you know if there are vocational training programmes available to you? (%). 62
Figure 49. Services needed for refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt (%). 63
Figure 50. Reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum (%). 66
Figure 51. Do you face racism or discrimination in Egypt because of your origin? 68
Figure 52. Places where refugees face racism or discrimination (%). 68
Figure 53. Services available for refugees in Egypt (%). 69
List of Tables
Table 1. Number of refugees or asylum seekers (15–64 years) in each region or governorate,
the selected sample size and the interviewed sample size. 14
Table 2. Percentages of households receiving earnings from various sources by region and
country of origin. 27
Table 3.A. Needed services by country of origin (%). 64
Table 3.B. Needed services by gender (%). 64
Table 4. Reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum 67
Table 5. Available services by gender and country of origin. 69
Executive summary
This study profiles the socio-economic characteristics of refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt. It is based on a nationally
representative sample of 2,600 working-age refugees (aged 15–64), drawn from the UNHCR registry of refugees and
asylum seekers. The survey was conducted by phone from 17 November to 9 December 2021.
Around half of the refugees in the sample are Syrian (48 per cent), 21 per cent are Sudanese, 10 per cent South
Sudanese, 8 per cent Eritrean, 5 per cent Ethiopian, 3 per cent Yemeni, and 3 per cent Somali. All other nationalities
accounted for 2 per cent of the sample.
Almost all refugees (99.5 per cent) live in urban areas, with 86 per cent of refugees living in Greater Cairo, 10 per cent
in Alexandria and 4 per cent in Damietta. Refugees in Alexandria and Damietta are almost exclusively from Syria; oth-
er nationalities are by and large settled in the Greater Cairo area. The mean household size is 3.7 persons. Although
no formal restrictions apply, refugees tend to settle in one locality within Egypt; only 8 per cent of refugees changed
their governorate of residence since they arrived in Egypt. The choice of the place of residence is reportedly depen-
dent primarily on access to jobs. Few (20 per cent) indicate they need to remain where they live to support relatives.
The mean duration of stay in Egypt is 7.1 years, the highest means were observed for Somalis, Syrians and Sudanese,
while the lowest mean was recorded for Eritreans (4.6 years).
Around 12 per cent of refugees have never been to school, 44 per cent completed primary or preparatory education,
and 24 per cent have secondary education. The results also show extremely low vocational education (only 3 per cent)
and an important share of refugees with tertiary education (16 per cent). Male refugees have only a slightly better
educational attainment than females. Yemeni refugees have a distinctly higher educational attainment, while Somalis
and Ethiopians have the lowest educational attainment (nearly two thirds have no education).
A total of 83 per cent of refugees depend on wage-employment as their main source of income, and 70 per cent also
receive social grants from the UNHCR; these represent the main income for 10 per cent of refugee households. Just
8.5 per cent get support from family and friends living in Egypt or abroad. Only 2 per cent of refugees have earnings
from their own or family business (among those, most are Yemenis).
Socio-economic profiling of refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt 9
The mean monthly income for refugees’ households is 4,129 Egyptian pounds (£E), and per capita mean income is
£E1,108 per month (compared with £E1,421 for Egyptians). The highest household incomes were recorded for Syrian
refugees (£E4,772), then, with a large difference, for Somalis (£E3,806) and Sudanese (£E3,786). The lowest mean was
recorded for Ethiopian refugees. Refugees living in Damietta (mostly Syrians) have the highest mean household in-
come (£E4,724) compared with Greater Cairo (£E4,108) and Alexandria (£E4,091).
Looking at their employment status, 41 per

cent of refugees are currently working, 11 per
cent are unemployed, 5 per cent are “discour-
aged” (willing to work but not actively search-
ing for jobs) and 43 per cent are economically
inactive (not willing or able to work). Only 26
per cent of females, as opposed to 55 per cent
of males, report to be employed. The highest
employment rate for female refugees was
found among Eritreans (43 per cent), followed
by Ethiopians (40 per cent) and Sudanese (38
per cent). The highest employment rates are
in Damietta (82 per cent), then Alexandria (65
per cent); Greater Cairo has the lowest em-
ployment rates at 53 per cent.
Almost all working refugees are employed

informally without a work contract or social
security coverage; only 1.3 per cent declared
having a work contract. More than one third
(36 per cent) of employed refugees are con-
sidered underemployed, that is, working few-
er than 40 hours per week and willing to work
more. On the other hand, a high proportion
of employed refugees are also working long
hours (with weeks of more than 48 hours).
By comparing the employment status in the country of origin and the employment status in Egypt, the study finds
high levels of human capital loss. More than a quarter of refugees (26 per cent) used to work in high-skilled jobs in
their country of origin, compared with 12 per cent in Egypt, while 17 per cent of refugees worked as professionals in
their country of origin but only 6 per cent do so in Egypt. High proportions of those who had worked as professionals,
in services, sales workers or crafters became unemployed or had to settle for lower skilled jobs.
About one third of refugees working reported having secured their work with help from family or friends, and more
than 60 per cent declared having received no support from either an NGO or other employment services provider.
Ethiopians seem to receive more from within their community networks, while Somalis mostly obtain help from as-
sociations and NGOs.
10 Socio-economic profiling of refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt
A very high share (40 per cent) of refugees declare being economically inactive because of long-term illness, injury or
disability (39 per cent), that is, incapacity to work.
Almost all refugees (98 per cent) speak Arabic; 16 per cent speak English.
Vocational training, computer training and understanding Egyptian laws and regulations for foreigners are the ser-
vices most requested by refugees in Egypt. More than four fifths of refugees have poor or no computer skills, and two
fifths believe that improving computer skills can provide them better job opportunities in Egypt. Only 7 per cent of
refugees reported that they received job training in Egypt.
Two fifths of respondents reported that they face racism or discrimination because of their origin.
Close to 80 per cent of refugees (of working age) own a smartphone, and only 17 per cent report never using the
internet.
Almost all refugees (98 per cent) rent their dwelling. Most (86 per cent) live in their own apartment, 13 per cent have
a room in a shared apartment. The highest mean monthly rents are paid by Yemenis (£E1,810) and Syrians (£E1,785),
the lowest by Eritreans (£E1,110). The mean monthly rent is £E1,573, which is considered “expensive” by 81 per cent
of refugees.
Acknowledgments
This study was produced jointly by ILO and UNHCR. AL Zanati associates was commissioned to conduct the underlying
survey of refugees and asylum seekers and assist with the data analysis. Luca Fedi (ILO), Shady Shehata (ILO), Amir
Obeid (ILO), Elena Ferrari (UNHCR), Nermeen Abdelaziz (UNHCR), Aliaa Rashwan (UNHCR), Robert Sibson (UNHCR) have
contributed to this project.
Introduction
Refugees and “asylum-seekers” face many challenges, including socio-economic vulnerabilities, psychological trauma
and lack of opportunity, and they are often exposed to a broad range of protection risks. Refugees or asylum seekers
struggle to develop fully their potential owing to the socio-economic context, which at times limits their capacity to pro-
vide for their own well-being. The situation was exacerbated by the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and its medium- to
long-term impacts on the national and global economy. In response to the challenges facing both host communities and
refugees, a new partnership initiative entitled “PROSPECTS – Partnership for improving prospects for host communities
and forcibly displaced persons” was launched by the Government of the Netherlands, bringing together the Internation-
al Finance Corporation (IFC), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the UN Chil-
dren’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Bank. The Partnership has a four-year initial time horizon (2019–2023) to respond to
forced displacement crises in eight countries (Egypt, Ethiopia, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Sudan and Uganda).
The overall objective of PROSPECTS in Egypt is to improve the living standards and inclusiveness of refugees, asylum
seekers and vulnerable host communities, by contributing to the expansion of socio-economic opportunities through
better education and mainstreamed protection interventions. With a geographical focus on Greater Cairo (Cairo and
urban areas of Qalyubia and Giza), Alexandria and Damietta, PROSPECTS Egypt works under three main pillars: edu-
cation and learning, employment with dignity, and protection and inclusion.
1.1 Objectives
The main goal of this report is to provide socio-economic profiling of refugees and asylum seekers with regards to skills,
networks, human capital and physical capital. The specific objectives of this study include the following:
Understand refugees’ socio-economic and demographic characteristics and living conditions in

the targeted areas (Greater Cairo, Alexandria and Damietta)
Identify refugees’ employment status, job experience, job search, knowledge of employment
opportunities and employment needs
Understand refugees’ skills sets and career development needs
Assess refugees’ perceptions on accessibility and utilization of social insurance and services.
1.2 Methodology
1.2.1 Sample design and selection
The results of this report are based on a phone survey with a stratified random sample of 2,600 refugees and asylum
seekers in the age group 15 to 64 in three regions or governorates (strata): Greater Cairo, Alexandria and Damietta.
The sampling frame (provided by the UNHCR) included all refugees and asylum seekers in the age group 15 to 64, in the
required three regions or governorates, who were registered with the UNHCR at the time of the survey (271,102 refugees
or asylum seekers as of 31 December 2021). The frame included the following information required for sample selection:
registration number (database ID), nationality and governorate of residence in Egypt. The frame did not provide any
personal information (names, addresses, phone numbers, and so on) for refugees or asylum seekers to protect data
confidentiality. After the sample was selected and a data-sharing agreement was signed, the UNHCR provided phone
numbers only for the selected individuals.
The total sample size was decided to keep the margin of error within 2 points for all estimates of proportions based on a
95 per cent confidence level. The sample size was calculated using the following formula (assuming a large population):
Where is the sample size, an estimate of the proportion to be measured (assumed to be 0.5 to get the highest pos-
sible sample size), = 1.96 the standard normal distribution value corresponding to the 95 per cent confidence level,
and d is the accepted margin of error (0.02). It was decided to increase the sample size to 2,600 refugees or asylum
seekers, and to use non-proportional allocation, to obtain estimates for each region or governorate with an acceptable
margin of error.
To account for non-response, a total sample of 7,000 refugees or asylum seekers was selected and distributed over
the regions or governorates. Simple Random Sampling (SRS) was used to select refugees or asylum seekers from each
region or governorate in the frame. Table 1 shows the number of refugees or asylum seekers in each region or gover-
norate, the selected sample size and the number of interviews in each region or governorate.
Table 1. Number of refugees or asylum seekers (15–64 years) in each region or governorate, the selected sample
size and the interviewed sample size.
1.2.2 Sampling weights
As appears in table 1, the sample is not self-weighted, as the sample distribution over the strata (regions or governor-
ates) is not proportional. Accordingly, it was needed to compute sampling weights to reflect the weight of each region
or governorate in the calculations of indicators on the overall level. The weight for each sample unit in a region or gover-
norate is calculated by dividing the total number of refugees or asylum seekers in the frame in this region or governorate
by the number of interviewed in this region or governorate (dividing column 1 by column 3 in table 1).
1.2.3 Questionnaire design
The main objective of the questionnaire was to provide socio-economic profiling of refugees and asylum seekers. In
addition to the cover page, identification and consent form, the questionnaire included the following sections:1
Respondent’s background: data about gender, nationality, education and literacy, age, duration
of stay in Egypt, governorate of residence in Egypt and reasons of selecting this place of resi-
dence;
Household characteristics and earnings: household composition, type of dwelling, cost of rent
and sources of household income;
Employment: employment status and occupation in Egypt and home country, work sector, num-
ber of working hours, work benefits and questions about job searching;
Skills and qualifications: languages and computing skills, job training, work experience and level
of some important work skills;
Services: questions about perceptions on availability and the most needed services such as finan-
cial and social and sports services;
Community inclusion: reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum, facing any discrimination or racism
in Egypt and the rights to enjoy opportunities and services on equal basis as Egyptians.
After the introduction, this report includes six chapters, each corresponding to one section of the questionnaire, fol-
lowed by a conclusion and recommendations.
1.2.4 Data collection
Data were collected between 17 November and 9 December 2021 using a CATI (Computer-Assisted Telephone Interview-
ing) system and Kobo toolbox (https://www.kobotoolbox.org). Comprehensive training on data collection techniques
and data collection system was provided for the interviewers.
This report presents a summary of the main results. The complete set of tables and survey questionnaire are presented
in Appendix A at the end of this report.
1
The questionnaire is presented in Appendix A.
Respondents’
background characteristics
To understand the results of the survey, it is important to study the background of the respondents. This was divided
into two parts, firstly age, sex, education, employment status, duration of stay in Egypt, access and use of ICT and the
internet, and so on, and secondly household size, type of dwelling, cost of rent, geographic mobility, and so on. The
results are presented below.
2.1 Gender, age, nationality
As presented in figure 1, the population of refugees and asylum

seekers in the sample has slightly more males than females (53 and
47 per cent, respectively). The percentage of Syrian female refu-
gees is lower than males (40 and 60 per cent, respectively), while
it is higher among Yeminis (68 per cent), South Sudanese (59 per
cent), Somalis (57 per cent) and Ethiopians (56 per cent). Most ref-
ugees are in the age groups 25 to 34 and 35 to 44 (57 per cent); the
mean age of the sampled refugees was 36.7 years.
The sample included 26 nationalities, but only seven account for

the vast majority of the refugees and asylum seekers in the coun-
try. Around half of the refugees in the sample are Syrian (48 per
cent), 21 per cent Sudanese, 10 per cent South Sudanese, 8 per cent
Eritrean, 5 per cent Ethiopian, 3 per cent Yemeni, and 3 per cent So-
mali. All other nationalities accounted for 2 per cent of the sample,
with Iraq the main country of origin. Almost all refugees (99.5 per
cent) live in urban areas,2 with 86 per cent in Greater Cairo, 10 per
cent in Alexandria and 4 per cent in Damietta. Refugees in Alexan-
dria and Damietta are almost exclusively from Syria; other nation-
alities are mainly settled in the Greater Cairo area.
2
This report will not, therefore, disaggregate the findings by urban or rural residency.
Figure 1. Selected socio-economic indicators (%).
Gender 53 47
15-24 10 7
25-34 14 13
Age group 35-44 14 16
45-54 10 8
55-64 4 3
Syria 29 19
Sudan 11 10
South Sudan 4 6
Country of Eritrea 3 3
origin
Ethiopia 3 4
Yemen 12
Somalia 12
Other 11
Greater Cairo 46 41
Region Alexandria 5 5
Damietta 22
2.2 Duration of stay in Egypt
As shown in figure 2, a vast majority of refugees (around 90 per cent) have been in Egypt for three years or more. The
percentage is higher among Syrians, Somalis and Yemenis (around 94 per cent); it is lowest among Eritreans (72 per
cent). One third of Somali refugees have lived in Egypt for nine years or more; very few Ethiopians and Eritreans stayed
for this long.
The mean duration of stay in Egypt for all refugees is 7.1 years, with no significant difference between males and fe-
males. The longest mean duration was observed for Somalis (7.9 years), followed by Syrians and Sudanese (7.6 years
each), and the lowest for Eritreans (4.6 years). There is also some variation in the mean duration of stay in Egypt by re-
gion of residence; the highest mean was observed in Damietta (8.1 years) and the lowest in Greater Cairo and Alexandria
(7.0 and 7.8 years respectively).
Figure 2. Duration of stay in Egypt in years (%).
Male 9 32 38 21 7.2
Female 13 34 34 19 7.1
Somalia 7 34 26 33 7.9
Syria 6 20 52 22 7.6
Sudan 16 35 25 23 7.6
South Sudan 12 49 20 19 7.0
Mean years
Yemen 7 66 19 9 5.3
Ethiopia 16 60 22 2 5.1
Eritrea 25 58 14 3 4.6
Greater Cairo 12 35 34 19 7.0
Alexandria 4 19 51 25 7.8
Damietta 3 16 55 26 8.1
Total 11 33 36 20 7.1
2.3 Geographic mobility
The results, summarized in figure 3, showed that ref-

ugees tend to stay within the governorate where they
settled; only 8 per cent of refugees changed their gover-
norate of residence since they arrived in Egypt.
Figure 3 also shows that the choice of the place of res-

idence is heavily dependent on access to jobs and the
availability of support from family and community of or-
igin. Around 90 per cent of respondents chose their cur-
rent place of residence because they found a job there
(46 per cent) or think they can find a job there (44 per
cent), while 42 per cent indicated that the choice was
(also) related to receiving support from family or their
community of origin. A small share, 20 per cent, said
they need to stay where they live in order to support
relatives.
Figure 3. Geographic mobility and reasons for staying in the current place of residence (%).
8% I found a job here

46%
I think I can find a job here

44%
I get help from my family or my community of origin

42%
I get support from people outside my community of origin

34%
I need to provide support to family living in the same area

20%
92%
Other reasons
13%
Since you arrived in Egypt, have you always What are the reasons for staying in your cur-
resided in the same governorate? rent place of residence?
2.4 Educational attainment
The results in figure 4 show that around 12 per cent of ref-

ugees have never been to school, 44 per cent completed
primary or preparatory education, and 24 per cent have
secondary education. The results also show extremely low
vocational education (only 3 per cent) and an important
share of refugees with tertiary education (16 per cent).
Male refugees have only a slightly better educational at-

tainment than females: 15 per cent of male refugees have
a university degree or higher, compared with 13 per cent
of females. Overall, the best educational attainment was
observed among Yemeni refugees (69 per cent have a
university degree). Somalis and Ethiopians, on the other
hand, have the lowest educational attainment: nearly two
thirds have no education.
Figure 4. Educational attainment (%).
100%
90%
80% University or higher
70% Upper Intermediate

60%
Vocational secondary
50%
40% General secondary
30% Preparatory
20%
Primary
10%
0% No education
Total
Syria
Sudan
South Sudan
Ethiopia
Eritrea
Somalia
Yemen
Alexandria
Damietta
Male
Female
Greater
Cairo
2.5 Literacy and numeracy
There are high levels of illiteracy and innumeracy among refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt. As shown in figure 5,
nearly one out of four refugees cannot read a sentence in their native language, and 17 per cent cannot count. The illit-
eracy rate is higher among females: 29 per cent cannot read and 23 per cent cannot count, compared with 17 and 12 per
cent for males, respectively.
The highest illiteracy rates were observed among South Sudanese and Somali refugees; more than half of them (53 per
cent) cannot read a sentence. Syrian refugees have the highest literacy rates – 93 per cent can read and 95 per cent can
count.
Figure 5. Literacy and numeracy (%).
53 53
44
42
38
34 34
29 29
23 21 23
19
17 17 17 17
12
7 5
Male Female South Somalia Ethiopia Sudan Eritrea Yemen Syria Total
Sudan
2.6 ICT use
As summarized in figure 6, refugees in Egypt have a fairly wide access to phones and the internet: 78 per cent have a
smartphone and 21 per cent a regular phone. Around 43 per cent of refugees access the internet almost every day, 32
per cent at least once a week and 7 per cent less frequently, while 17 per cent reported not using it.
Figure 6. Mobile phones ownership and Internet access (%).
81
Male 19
85
75
Female 23
79
92
Yemen 7
91
87
Syria 12
89
84
Eritrea 15
88
68
Sudan 31
76
68
Ethiopia 32
73
63
Somalia 38
69
57
South Sudan 42
63
78
Total 21
83
Male refugees are more likely to have smartphones and access to the internet. Yemeni and Syrian refugees are more
likely to have smartphones and access to the internet than other nationalities.
Respondents not using the internet were asked about the reasons behind that. Around four fifths answered that they do
not have a PC or smartphone, 10 per cent because of high or non-affordable costs, and 6 per cent have no time.
2.7 Dwelling
As shown in figure 7, most refugees (86 per cent) live in apartments shared with family members only; 13 per cent live in
rooms in apartments shared with other people.
As shown in the appendix, Syrians, Yemenis and Sudanese are more likely to live in a separate apartment, while Eritreans
and Somalis are more likely to live in a room in a shared apartment. Also, refugees living in Alexandria and Damietta are
more likely than those in Greater Cairo to live in a separate apartment.
Figure 7. Type of dwelling (%).
Syria 96 4 0.2
Sudan 84 16 0.3
South Sudan 77 22 1.1
Ethiopia 68 30 2.0
Eritrea 61 38 1.4
Somalia 63 35 2.2
Yemen 84 16
Greater Cairo 84 15 0.6

Alexandria 99 1 0.4
Damietta 97 3 0.2
Total 86 13 0.6
2.8 Cost of rent
Almost all refugees (98 per cent) live in rented dwellings.

Figure 8 shows the mean monthly rent paid in Egyptian
pounds by country of origin and region.3 The highest
mean values of monthly rent were observed among
refugees from Yemen (£E1,810) and Syria (£E1,785). The
lowest mean was seen among Eritreans (£E1,110).
3
It should be noted that the results related to cost of living and income reflect the situation at the time of data collection (November and December 2021).
Respondents were asked whether they thought the rent they pay for accommodation is expensive, reasonable or cheap.
As shown in figure 9, more than four fifths of the refugees (81 per cent) consider the cost of rent to be expensive, 18 per
cent think it is reasonable, and around 1 per cent think it is cheap. Refugees from Ethiopia, Sudan and South Soudan
are more likely to consider the cost of rent as being expensive, while Eritreans are more likely to consider it fair. Also,
refugees living in Damietta are more likely than those in Greater Cairo and Alexandria to think that rent is expensive (85,
82 and 74 per cent, respectively).
Figure 8. Mean monthly rent paid in EGP by country of origin and region.
1,785 1,810
1,588 1,573
1,523
1,461
1,378 1,390 1,394
1,277
1,110
Eritrea Sudan Somalia Ethiopia South Syria Yemen Greater Alexandria Damietta Total
Sudan Cairo
Figure 9. Opinion about the monthly rent by country of origin and region.
2 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1
7 14 14 14
19 19 22 17 18
91 28 26
85 85 85
80 82 81
79 78
72 74
Ethiopia Sudan South Syria Somalia Yemen Eritrea Greater Alexandria Damietta Total
Sudan Cairo
2.9 Mean household4 size
The results of the study showed large variations in the household size (number of household members) among refugees
of different nationalities. As figure 10 shows, the highest mean household size was observed among Syrian refugees (4.1
persons per household), followed by Sudanese and Yemeni refugees (3.9 and 3.7 persons per household, respectively).
The lowest mean household size was observed among Ethiopians (1.7 persons per household).
Figure 10. Mean household size by country of origin and region.
Syria 4.1
Sudan 3.9
Yemen 3.7
South Sudan 3.6
Somalia 2.9
Eritrea 2.6
Ethiopia 1.7
Greater Cairo 3.6
Alexandria 4.2
Damietta 4.2
Total 3.7
The mean household size for refugees in Alexandria and

Damietta was 4.2 persons per household, larger than that for
Greater Cairo, where the mean size was 3.6 persons.
4
A household is defined as a group of two or more related or unrelated people who usually reside in the same dwelling, and who make common provision
for food or other essentials for living; or a single person living in a dwelling who makes provision for his or her own food and other essentials for living,
without combining with any other person.
Incomes
This section provides information about various sources of household earnings (wages and salaries, income from charity
or from family and friends living in Egypt or abroad, and other sources), mean household income from each source and
mean per capita income.
3.1 Sources of earnings
As shown in figure 11, more than four fifths (82.7 per cent) of refugees depend on wage-employment as their main
source of income, and 69.7 per cent also receive social grants from the UNHCR; these represent the main income for 10
per cent of refugee households. Just 8.5 per cent get support from family and friends living in Egypt or abroad. Only 2
per cent of refugees have earnings from their own or family business (among those, most are Yemenis), or other sources
such as income from properties or financial capital, scholarships, pension, and others.
Figure 11. Sources of refugees’ household earnings (%).
Wages and salaries

82.7
Money from charity
69.7
Money from family or friends living in Egypt
4.9
Money from family or friends living abroad
3.6
Your business/ family business
2.4
Income from properties or financial capital
0.3
Other sources
2.6
As shown in table 2, Yemeni, Somali and Ethiopian refugees depend on assistance and charity more than other nation-
alities. Also, refugees living in Alexandria depend on assistance more than those in other regions.
Table 2. Percentages of households receiving earnings from various sources by region and country of origin.
Wages and Your Income Money Money Money Other

salaries business or from from family from family from sources
family properties or friends or friends charity
business or financial living in living
capital Egypt abroad
Country of origin
Syria 89.7 2.7 0.3 3.3 2.9 74.0 2.3
Sudan 87.5 3.2 0.3 3.8 1.2 68.9 3.5
South Sudan 79.3 1.1 0.0 4.8 0.5 67.7 1.6
Ethiopia 61.5 1.0 0.0 9.1 5.1 56.5 3.0
Eritrea 65.1 2.1 0.0 6.2 3.4 69.9 1.4
Somalia 66.1 0.0 0.0 25.1 11.0 63.9 0.0
Yemen 61.4 3.5 0.0 14.8 23.6 55.1 5.2
Region
Greater Cairo 82.5 1.9 0.3 5.2 3.8 67.9 2.6
Alexandria 82.0 6.0 1.1 3.2 2.6 78.3 3.6
Damietta 89.9 3.1 0.2 2.9 1.5 90.8 1.3
Total 82.7 2.4 0.3 4.9 3.6 69.7 2.6
3.2 Main source of income
As shown in figure 12, wage work is the main source of income for 83 per cent of refugees, followed by UNHCR trans-
fers (10 per cent). Only 7 per cent of refugees have other main sources of income, including that from self-employment
(business), property or remittances.
Sudanese and Syrians are more dependent on wage work, whereas Somalis and Eritreans are more dependent on UN-
HCR transfers. A sizeable share of Yemeni and Ethiopian refugees are the only nationalities receiving other sources of
income, especially money from family members or friends living abroad.
Figure 12. Main source of income by country of origin (%).
89
88
78 83
68 67 66
61
29
21
23 24
9 9 10
13 12 7
8 3 8 4 10 10
Sudan Syria South Sudan Eritrea Ethiopia Somalia Yemen Total
3.3 Mean household income
Figure 13 shows that the mean monthly income for refugees’ households is £E4,129. There are large variations in the
mean household income for refugees by country of origin and by region of residence in Egypt.
The highest mean of household income was recorded for Syrian refugees (£E4,772), then, with a large difference, for
Somalis (£E3,806) and Sudanese (£E3,786). The lowest mean was recorded for Ethiopian refugees. Looking at regions,
refugees living in Damietta (mostly Syrians) have the highest mean household income (£E4,724) compared with Greater
Cairo (£E4,108) and Alexandria (£E4,091).
Figure 13. Mean household income (EGP).
Syria 4,772
Somalia 3,806
Sudan 3,786
South Sudan 3,443
Yemen 3,414
Eritrea 2,882
Ethiopia 2,806
Greater Cairo 4,108
Alexandria 4,091
Damietta 4,724
Total 4,129
3.4 Mean household income quartiles
Figure 14 shows the mean monthly household income quartiles for the interviewed refugees and asylum seekers, which
are £E,2600, £E3,800 and £E5,300. Accordingly, 25 per cent of households have an income of less than £E2,600, while
another 25 per cent have an income of more than £E5,300.
As shown in figure 14, around half of Eritrean and Ethiopian refugee households (51 and 47 per cent, respectively) have
an income of less than £E2,600. On the other hand, 34 per cent of Syrian and 25 per cent of Yemeni refugee households
have an income of more than £E5,300. Refugee households in Damietta are more likely to come under the highest in-
come quartile than refugees living in other regions.
Figure 14. Mean household income quartiles (%).
Syria 13 20 33 34
Sudan 30 32 21 17
South Sudan 38 29 18 15
Ethiopia 47 29 15 9
Eritrea 51 27 15 7
Somalia 36 33 12 19
Yemen 28 27 20 25
Greater Cairo 26 25 24 25
Alexandria 18 28 35 19
Damietta 10 24 35 32
Total 25 25 25 25
3.5 Mean per capita income
As shown in figure 15, the mean monthly per capita income for refugees is £E1,108, but there are large variations de-
pending on the country of origin and region of residence.
The highest mean monthly per capita income was observed for Ethiopian refugees (£E1,653), then, with a large differ-
ence, Syrians (£E1,167) and Somalis (£E1,118). The high per capita income observed for Ethiopians and Somalis may be
because the mean household size for both communities is smaller than that for other nationalities (as presented in the
previous section). On the other hand, the lowest mean monthly per capita incomes were recorded for Sudanese and
South Sudanese (£E968 and £E958, respectively).
Considering the data by region, refugees living in Greater Cairo have the highest mean per capita income (£E1,125), and
the lowest was observed for refugees in Alexandria (£E981).
Figure 15. Mean per capita income (EGP).
Ethiopia 1,653
Syria 1,167
Somalia 1,118
Eritrea 1,072
Yemen 1,031
Sudan 968
South Sudan 958
Greater Cairo 1,125
Alexandria 981
Damietta 1,115
Total 1,108
3.6 Mean income from various sources
Figures 16.A and 16.B show the mean monthly income for refugee households and mean monthly per capita income
from wages and salaries, charity and assistance.5 The mean monthly income for households is £E3,601 from wages and
salaries and £E1,757 from cash transfers.6 The mean monthly per capita income for refugees is £E801 from wages and
salaries and £E443 from cash transfers and charity.
Figures 16.A and 16.B also show some variations in mean monthly household income and per capita income from var-
ious sources for refugees of different nationalities. For example, the highest mean household income from wages and
salaries was observed among Syrian households (£E3,601), while the highest mean household income from social trans-
fers and charity was observed for Sudanese households (£E2,039). On the other hand, Ethiopian refugees have the
highest mean monthly per capita income from wages and salary (£E1,372) and from social transfers and charity (£E870).
5
The mean values are calculated for households that received each source of income during the 12 months preceding the interview.
6
UNHCR provided assistance for refugees because of the spread of COVID-19; this may have increased the calculated average income from cash transfers.
Figure 16.A. Mean monthly household income from wages and salaries and charity (EGP).
1,706
1,757
1,619 1,585
2,039 1,841 1,526
1,346
3,601
3,072
2,692 2,743
2,444 2,564 2,511
2,349
Syria Sudan South Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Yemen Total

Sudan
Figure 16.B. Mean monthly per capita income from wages and salaries and charity (EGP).
870
395 1,372 464 479

459 443
493
497
875
803 788 801
696 735
620

Sudan
Employment
This section provides information about the respondents’ employment status, rates of employment and unemployment,
formal versus informal employment, occupation and job skills level in Egypt and home country, employment sector,
mean working hours and underemployment (time-related), work benefits, job search and sources of help to get a job, in
addition to challenges in running business in Egypt.
4.1 Employment status
Figure 17 shows that more than two fifths (41 per cent) of refugees are currently working, 11 per cent are unemployed
(not working and searching for jobs), 5 per cent are discouraged (willing to work but not actively searching for jobs), and
43 per cent are economically inactive (not willing or able to work).
The percentage of refugees who are currently working is higher among males than females (55 and 26 per cent, respec-
tively), while the percentage of economically inactive refugees (not willing to work) is much lower (28 and 59 per cent,
respectively).
The percentage of refugees currently working is relatively higher among Syrians (44 per cent), Sudanese (43 per cent)
and Eritreans (43 per cent) than among other nationalities, especially Somalis (only 24 per cent employed). On the other
hand, the highest percentage of refugees who feel discouraged concerns Ethiopians (11 per cent), almost four times
more than the corresponding percentage for Syrians (3 per cent).
Considering the data by region, the highest percentage of refugees currently working was observed in Damietta (49 per
cent), compared with 41 per cent in Greater Cairo and 40 per cent in Alexandria, while the highest percentage of inactive
refugees was found in Alexandria (46 per cent), compared with 42 per cent in Greater Cairo and Damietta.
Figure 17. Employment status (%).
Male 55 12 4 28
Female 26 10 5 59
Syria 44 7 3 47
Sudan 43 15 6 36
Eritrea 43 18 5 34
Ethiopia 34 13 11 42
Yemen 33 15 5 47
Somalia 24 21 9 46
Damietta 49 5 4 42
Total 41 11 5 43
4.2 Employment rates
Figure 18 shows employment rates of refugees (percent-

ages of those currently working) by country of origin, re-
gion and gender. The highest employment rate among
male refugees was observed among Syrians (66 per cent),
followed by Sudanese (48 per cent) and Eritreans (44 per
cent), while the lowest rates were among Somalis (only 14
per cent). Moreover, male refugees have higher employ-
ment rates in Damietta (82 per cent) than in Alexandria
(65 per cent) and Greater Cairo (53 per cent).
Figure 18. Employment rates (%).
Syria 66 10
Sudan 48 38
South Sudan 44 43
Ethiopia 41 26
Eritrea 38 37
Somalia 28 40
Yemen 14 29
Greater Cairo 53 28
Alexandria 65 12
Damietta 82 9
Total 55 26
The highest employment rate for female refugees was found among Eritreans (43 per cent), followed by Ethiopians (40
per cent) and Sudanese (38 per cent). Female refugees have a higher employment rate in Greater Cairo (28 per cent)
than in Alexandria (12 per cent) and Damietta (9 per cent).
4.3 Unemployment rates

Figure 36 shows the unemployment rates of interviewed refugees according to the standard and broad definitions of un-
employment, in line with international labour statistics standards. Persons are thus considered unemployed, according
to the broad definition, if they are of working age (15–64 years), did not work over the past week, are willing to work and
are available, whether they are actively searching for work or not. The standard definition requires the latter criterion of
job search.
The overall unemployment rate is around 11 per cent according to the standard definition and 15 per cent according
to the broad definition. Unemployment rates (both definitions) are higher among male refugees than among females.
Somali refugees and refugees living in Greater Cairo have higher rates of unemployment than other groups.
Figure19. Unemployment rates according to the standard and broad definitions (%).
30
23
16 21 21 21 20 16
15
14 13
9
21 18 8
12 12 15 15
10
9 7 11 10 12
5
Male Female Somalia Eritrea Ethiopia South Sudan Yemen Syria Greater Alexandria Damietta Total
Sudan Cairo
4.4 Formal versus informal employment
As figure 19 shows, almost all working refugees are employed informally without a contract; only 1.3 per cent of them
do have contracts. The highest rates of employment with a contract were observed among Eritreans (4.8 per cent) and
South Sudanese (4.2 per cent). None of the employed refugees from Somalia and Yemen who were interviewed have
work contracts. Employed refugees in Greater Cairo are more likely to have work contracts than those in other regions.
The percentage of employed male refugees with a work contract is higher than that of females (1.8 and 1.0 per cent,
respectively). However, employed female refugees from South Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea are more likely than males to
have work contracts.
Figure 20. Percentages of employed refugees with work contract.
7.1
6.8
4.8 4.8
4.2
2.9 2.9
2.4
1.9
1.8
1.4 1.4
1.2 1.3
1.1 1.1
1.0
0.6 0.5
0.1 0.1 0.4 0.4
Syria Sudan South Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Yemen Greater AlexandriaDamietta Total
Sudan Cairo
4.5 Current occupation
As shown in figure 20 more than one third of employed refugees

work in services and sales, around a quarter in handicrafts and
around 12 per cent in elementary occupations (including domestic
workers).
Figure 21. Current occupation (%).
Services and sales workers

35.2
Handicrafts
24.8
Elementary occupations
12.4
Construction work, plumbing, electricity.
7.6
Professionals
6.4
Plant and Machine operators and assemblers
6.3
Technicians and associate professionals
3.3
Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers
1.6
Clerical support workers
1.1
Other
1.2
4.5.1 Current occupation by gender

Figure 21 presents the current occupations for employed
refugees by gender. Male refugees are more likely than fe-
males to work as service and sales workers, construction
workers, plant and machine operators, technicians and as-
sociate professionals. Female refugees are more present
in handicrafts, elementary occupations (including domes-
tic work) and as professionals.
Figure 22. Current occupation by gender (%).
Services and sales workers

36 34
Handicrafts
22 32
Elementary occupations
8 23
Construction work, plumbing, electricity.
11
Professionals
5 9
Plant and Machine operators and assemblers
9 1
Technicians and associate professionals
4 1
Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers
2
Clerical support workers
1
Other
11
4.5.2 Current occupation and prior occupation in country of origin

Figure 22 shows the current occupations for employed refugees according to their country of origin. More than half of
the Yemeni and Ethiopian refugees work in services and sales (55 and 53 per cent, respectively). Nearly half the Somalis
(46 per cent) and around one third of Eritreans work in handicrafts. South Sudanese, Eritreans, Sudanese and Ethiopians
are more likely to work in elementary occupations (including domestic work) than other nationalities.
Figure 23. Current occupation by country of origin (%).
55
53
46
42 Services and sales
40
37
36
35
Handcrafts
32
30 Elementary
26 27 27 occupations
25
24 22
19 21 Construction
18
17
15 Professionals
12
9 81010 8
Plant and Machine
7 7 8 7 9 7
54 6 6
5 5
66 operators
3
111 2 Other
Syria Sudan South Sudan Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Yemen Total

Figure 23 shows the last occupation of refugees before they left their country of origin. While 17 per cent of refugees
worked as professionals in their home country, only 6 per cent do so in Egypt. In particular, 41 per cent of Yeminis
worked as professionals in Yemen but only 7 per cent in Egypt.
As shown in figure 24, most unemployed refugees, and a high proportion of those who had worked as professionals,
in services and sales, or in handicrafts in their home country became unemployed in Egypt. However, those who had
worked in construction remained in the same category in Egypt.
Figure 24. Current occupation by country of origin (%).
41
30 Services and sales

28 29 29 29
26 Handcrafts
25 25 25
24
22 22 Elementary
20 20 20 occupations
19 19 19 19
18
17 17
16 16
14 1414 Construction
11 12
10 11 101010 9 10 10 10 Professionals
8 9 9 8
7
6 5 Plant and Machine
4 5
operators
1 2
Other
Figure 25. Number of respondents by occupation in home country (H) and in Egypt (E).
Unemployed (H): 1,434 Unemployed (E): 1,492
Professionals (H): 166

Professionals (E): 59
Managers of medium & large orgs (H): 37
Other (E): 25
Other (H): 28
Services and sales workers (H): 282 Services and sales workers (E): 366
Other handcrafts (H): 231 Other handcrafts (E): 319
Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers (H): 74 Elementary occupations (E): 103
Elementary occupations (H): 74 Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers (E): 16
Construction work, plumbing, electricity. (H): 135 Construction work, plumbing, electricity. (E): 110
Construction work, plumbing, electricity. (H): 135 Plant and Machine operators and assemblers (E): 66
Plant and Machine operators and assemblers (H): 53 Technicians and associate professionals (E): 44
4.5.3 Previous employment experience in the country of origin

As shown in figure , 44 per cent of refugees were employed before they came to Egypt, a percentage not much higher
than that of those employed in Egypt (41 per cent). The percentage of employed male refugees is lower in Egypt than in
their home country (55 and 63 per cent, respectively). However, the percentage of employed female refugees is higher
in Egypt than in their country of origin (26 and 23 per cent, respectively).
Refugees from Somalia, Syria and Sudan had higher employment rates in their home countries, while Yemenis, Ethiopi-
ans, Eritreans and South Sudanese have higher employment rates in Egypt.
Figure 26. Percentages of employed refugees in Egypt and country of origin.
Male 55 63
Female 26 23
Syria 44 51
Sudan 43 49
Eritrea 43 30
South Sudan 38 35
Ethiopia 34 20
Yemen 33 15
Somalia 24 38
Total 41 44
4.5.4 Skills level

Figures 26.A and 26.B show that around 14 per cent of refugees changed from high-skilled to mid-level and low-skilled
jobs when they left their home countries.7
More than a quarter of refugees (26 per cent) used to work in high-skilled jobs in their country of origin, but only 12
per cent in Egypt. The percentages of those working in mid-level and low-skilled jobs at home increased in Egypt. The
decline in the percentage of refugees working in high-skilled jobs in their country of origin and in Egypt is particularly
noticeable among Yemeni refugees (52 per cent compared with 10 per cent, respectively). The decline is also significant
among Sudanese and Ethiopian refugees.
7
High-skilled jobs include managers, professionals and technicians, mid-level jobs include services and sales workers, skilled agricultural, forestry and fish-
ery workers, construction workers and crafters. Low-skilled jobs include clerical support workers, plant and machine operators and assemblers in addition
to elementary occupations (including domestic work).
Figure 27.A. Work in country of origin by skills level.
10 10
16 14 15 16 14 15
34
56 59 65 58
71
68
74
52
28 26 26
25 19
16
9

Sudan
Figure 27.B. Work in Egypt by skills level.
4
16 16 19
24 21 21
25
84
66
74 68
65 77 71
73
18
12 10 12
8 2 6
3
Sudan
Figure 28. Number of respondents by skill level of occupation in home country (H) and in Egypt (E).
High-skilled jobs (E): 104

High-skilled jobs (H): 289
Mid-level-skilled jobs (H): 722 Mid-level-skilled jobs (E): 811
Low-skilled jobs (E): 193

Low-skilled jobs (H): 155
Unemployed (H): 1,434 Unemployed (E): 1,492
As shown in figure 27, there is a noticeable downgrading in skills level between refugees’ occupations in their home
country and in Egypt. For example, the highest percentage of refugees who had worked in high-skilled jobs in their
home country worked in mid-level- jobs or became unemployed in Egypt.
4.6 Sector of activity
Figure 28 shows the current work sectors for working refugees by coun-
try of origin. Almost half the refugees (48 per cent) work in the sector la-
belled “other services”, which includes a wide range of activities such as
domestic work and catering. Almost a quarter of refugees (22 per cent)
work in the manufacturing/handicraft sector, in addition to 10 per cent
in construction, 9 per cent in wholesale or retail trade and 11 per cent in
other sectors. Only 0.4 per cent of refugees (mainly Syrians) work in the
agriculture/livestock/forestry/fishingsector.
Ethiopians, Sudanese and South Sudanese are more likely than other
nationalities to work in construction, while Eritreans and Syrians are
more likely to work in manufacturing/handicrafts.
Figure 29. Sector of activity (%).
65 64 63
57
55 54
48
39
29 30
21 21 22
18
15 15
13 13 13
10 11 12 11 11
8 9 9 9 9 10 9
6 6 5
0.3 1 3 3 3
0.4
Agriculture/Livestock/Forestry/Fishing Construction Other Services

Manufacturing/Handicrafts Wholesale or Retail Trade Other
4.7 Mean working hours
Figure 29 shows that on average, an employed refugee works 48.4 hours per week. The mean working hours are much
higher among male refugees than among females (53.6 and 35.9 hours per week, respectively). The highest mean val-
ues were observed among Syrians (54 hours) and Eritreans (47.1 hours), while the lowest mean was recorded for South
Sudanese (36 hours per week). Refugees living in Alexandria work more hours on average (56.2 hours) than refugees in
other regions (52.8 hours in Damietta and 47.3 hours in Greater Cairo).
Figure 30 shows some variations in the mean working hours per week by gender and by country of origin and region.
For example, male refugees from Syria and Ethiopia tend to work longer hours (56 and 51.2 hours per week, respective-
ly) than other nationalities. Female refugees from Somalia and Eritrea work more hours (47.8 and 44.3 hours per week,
respectively) than female refugees from other countries.
Male refugees in Alexandria work 60 hours on average per week, compared with 52.6 hours for those in Greater Cairo.
Similarly, the highest mean working hours per week were recorded for female refugees in Greater Cairo (36 hours),
around 9 hours more than female refugees in Damietta.
Figure 30. Mean working hours per week for working refugees.
Male 53.6
Female 35.9
Syria 54.0
Sudan 47.1
Eritrea 46.7
South Sudan 45.4
Ethiopia 42.2
Yemen 40.7
Somalia 36.0
Greater Cairo 47.3

Alexandria 56.2
Damietta 52.8
Total 48.4
Figure 31. Mean working hours per week for working refugees by gender.
Syria 56.0 34.9

Eritrea 50.5 44.3
Somalia 42.0 47.8

Ethiopia 51.2 41.9
Sudan 49.7 32.1
Yemen 49.3 30.2
South Sudan 42.6 31.4
Greater Cairo 52.6 36.0

Alexandria 60.0 34.3
Damietta 55.0 26.8
Total 53.6 35.9

4.8 Underemployment (time-related)
Employed persons are considered to be in time-related underemployment when they work less than 40 hours per week
and are willing to work more paid hours. As shown in figure 31, more than one third (36 per cent) of employed refugees
are considered underemployed.
The percentage of underemployed female refugees is slightly higher than that of males (38 and 35 per cent, respec-
tively). Yemeni and Eritrean refugees have the highest underemployment rates (52 and 43 per cent, respectively), while
Somalis have the lowest rates (25 per cent). Around three quarters of the refugees in Damietta are considered underem-
ployed, compared with 33 per cent in Alexandria and 36 per cent in Greater Cairo.
Figure 32. Percentages of employed refugees working less than 40 hours per week and willing to work more
hours.
Male 35
Female 38
Yemen 52
Eritrea 43
South Sudan 41
Sudan 39
Ethiopia 39
Syria 28
Somalia 25
Greater Cairo 36
Alexandria 33
Damietta 74
Total 36
4.9 Work benefits

The results in figure 32 show that very few employed refugees enjoy basic work bene-
fits. For example, only 5.3 per cent of employed refugees have paid vacations, 1.3 per
cent have a work contract and less than 1 per cent have health or social insurance.
Working female refugees are more likely than males to have a work contract but less
likely to have paid vacation, health and social insurance. The results given in the appen-
dix show that only 0.5 per cent of working refugees had to issue work permission when
they started to work.
Figure 33. Percentages of working refugees enjoying some work benefits (%).
Male 6.0 1.0 1.0 0.2

Female 3.8 1.8
Syria 6.0 0.1 0.4

Sudan 3.7 1.2 1.8 0.6
South Sudan 8.5 4.2 1.4
Ethiopia 2.9 2.9
Eritrea 4.8 4.8
Somalia 9.1
Yemen
Greater Cairo 5.5 1.4 0.8 0.2

Alexandria 4.8 0.5 0.5
Damietta 3.0 0.4
Total 5.3 1.3 0.7 0.1
4.10 Job search

Around 11 per cent of refugees are unemployed, that is, not working and searching for jobs (12 per cent for males and
10 per cent for females). Figure 33 shows that around a quarter of those willing to work and searching for jobs spent 12
months or more in job search. Job search duration is higher among females, Yemenis and refugees living in Alexandria.
Figure 34. Duration of job search (%).
Male 23 47 12 18
Female 14 37 17 32
Syria 16 54 10 20
Sudan 27 41 8 23
Ethiopia 15 62 15 8
Eritrea 15 56 19 11
Somalia 47 21 32
Yemen 11 34 0 54
Damietta 17 41 3 38
Total 19 43 14 24
4.11 Sources of help in obtaining the current job
Employed respondents were asked about the sources of help they received for obtaining their current job. As presented
in figure 34, family members and friends from the community of origin are the main sources of help for 36 per cent of
respondents. A small percentage received help from an association or an NGO (2 per cent) or from other sources (1 per
cent). More than three fifths of respondents (62 per cent) mentioned that they had no help in obtaining their current job.
Syrian and Yemeni refugees are more likely to receive help from family members (7 and 6 per cent, respectively). Ethio-
pians depend more on friends from their community of origin, while Somalis have the highest percentage of obtaining
help from associations and NGOs.
Figure 35. Sources of help obtaining the current job.
South Sudan 18 82
Yemen 7 23 71
Eritrea 2 24 6 68
Sudan 2 30 31 65
Syria 6 36 21 59
Somalia 46 9 55
Ethiopia 3 53 47
Total 4 33 21 62
4.12 Reasons for not searching for paid jobs
As presented in figure 35, respondents who are not working and not
searching for jobs gave the main reasons as household or family re-
sponsibilities (74 per cent), long-term illness, injury or disability (39 per
cent), study or training (10 per cent), other reasons (4 per cent).
Figure 36. Reasons for not searching for a paid job (%).
Male 52 46 15 6
Female 85 35 6 3
Somalia 79 34 9 3
Syrian 71 45 10 4
Sudan 70 42 5 5
South Sudan 66 49
Yemen 53 43 16 6
Ethiopia 62 52 24
Eritrea 72 32 12 4
15-24 41 17 44 3
25-34 82 25 5 3
35-44 85 41 21
45-54 82 57 2
55-64 66 62 1 15
Total 74 39 10 4
Female refugees are more likely to report being engaged in family responsibilities than males (85 and 52 per cent, re-
spectively). Male refugees, however, are more likely to report illness, injury or disability, study or training.
Among young refugees aged 15 to 24, 44 per cent reported that they did not work because they are studying or training,
leaving a large share of youth not in employment, training or education (NEET).
4.13 Challenges in running businesses in Egypt

A small percentage of refugees (around 3 per cent) run their own business in Egypt. The key challenges they face are
presented in figure 37. Accessing loans was considered a challenge for 64 per cent of them, followed by administrative
procedures related to residence or business license (58 per cent), business knowledge and techniques such as planning,
accounting and marketing (54 per cent) and security and legal disputes issues (53 per cent).
Figure 37. Challenges in running businesses in Egypt.
64
58
53 54
47 46
42
36
Security, corruption, Business knowledge Administrative Accessing loans

legal disputes & techniques procedures for residence
or business license
Skills and qualifications
This section provides information about respondents’ skills and qualifications, and the skills needed to find better job
opportunities in Egypt. The results include information about language and computer skills, job training received, type
of job training, work experience, and skills acquired compared with skills required to do their jobs.
5.1 Language skills
As presented in figure 38.A, almost all refugees (98 per cent) speak Arabic or can read and write it, while 16 per cent
speak English and 13 per cent speak other languages such as French, German, Somali, Tigrinya and others. Males are
more likely to speak English, while females are more likely to speak other languages.
As shown in figure 38.B, two fifths of respondents believe that improving their language skills can provide them with bet-
ter job opportunities in Egypt. Male refugees, and refugees from Yemen, Eritrea and Ethiopia, are more likely to believe
that improving their language skills can provide better job opportunities.
Figure 38.A. Spoken languages.
Male 99 18 11
Female 98 14 14
Syria 100 13 1
Sudan 100 15 12
South Sudan 96 22 19
Ethiopia 93 14 34
Eritrea 91 23 53
Somalia 89 29 49
Yemen 100 25 2
Total 98 16 13
Figure 38.B. Can Improving language skills provide you with better job opportunities in Egypt?
Male 44 56
Female 37 63
Syria 40 60
Sudan 37 63
South Sudan 38 62
Ethiopia 44 56
Eritrea 46 54
Somalia 43 57
Yemen 50 50
Total 40 60
5.2 Computer skills
As shown in figure 39.A, more than four fifths of refugees (81 per cent) have poor or no computer skills. Only 3 per cent
have programming or software development skills, 8 per cent have knowledge of Word or spreadsheet software. The
most reported computer skills include social media (79 per cent), internet use (68 per cent) and Microsoft Office. In gen-
eral, male refugees have higher computer skills than females. Yemeni refugees have relatively higher levels of computer
skills than other nationalities, while Ethiopians have the lowest levels.
As summarized in figure 39B, two fifths of respondents believe that improving computer skills can provide them with
better job opportunities in Egypt. Male refugees, and refugees from Yemen and Eritrea, are more likely than females and
refugees of other nationalities to believe that improving computer skills can provide better job opportunities.
Figure 39.A. Level of computer skills.
Male 4 9 10 77
Female 2 7 7 85
Syria 3 10 9 78
Sudan 3 7 9 81
Ethiopia 1 5 94
Eritrea 3 5 10 83
Somalia 7 7 4 82
Yemen 2 19 7 72
Total 3 8 8 81
Figure 39.B. Can improving computer skills provide you with better job opportunities in Egypt?
Male 42 45 13
Female 37 50 14
Syria 42 47 11
Sudan 38 49 13
Ethiopia 29 44 26
Eritrea 51 43 7
Somalia 30 64 7
Yemen 60 37 4
Total 40 47 13
5.3 Job training8

Respondents were asked whether they received any job training programme or any type of training to improve their
skills. As shown in figure 40.A, only 7 per cent of refugees reported that they received job training. The highest percent-
age of those who received job training was observed among Yemeni refugees (15 per cent), while none of the Ethiopian
respondents received any type of training.
Regarding the type of training received, as shown in figure 40.B, around two thirds (64 per cent) of those who received
training had professional training: 28 per cent received training to improve their computer skills, 18 per cent to improve
language skills, and 5 per cent received other types of training (mainly for handicrafts). Male refugees are more likely
to receive training on computer and language skills, while females are more likely to receive professional training and
other types of training (especially handicrafts). Yemeni refugees are more likely to receive professional training, while
Somalis are more likely than refugees of other nationalities to receive computer and language skills.
8
Job training or skills training refers to a short-cycle training on key job-related competencies, including languages, IT, management, and other core skills
Figure 40.A. Have you ever received job training to improve your skills?
100
94 95 97
93 91 93
90 90
85
15
7 10 3 10 9 7
6 5
Male Female Syria Sudan South Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Yemen Total
Sudan
Figure 40.B. What type of training did you receive?
75 77
73
69
64
60
58 57
54
5050
38
28 28
2424 2525
21 23
20 20
19 18
16 15
13
2 8 8
2 5 5
Male Female Syria Sudan South Ethiopia Somalia Yemen Total

Sudan
5.4 Work experience
Figure 41 presents percent distribution of currently employed respondents by years of work experience. Around one
thirds of currently employed refugees (39 per cent) have more than five years of work experience, 18 per cent have four
to five years of experience, while 16 per cent have less than a year or no previous work experience at all. In general, the
highest percentages of those with more than five years of experience were observed among male and Syrian refugees.
Figure 41. Years of work experience for currently employed refugees (%).
56
51
45
44
39
36 36 36
34 34
31
29 27
27 27 26
25
23 24 24
21 22 22 21
18 18 19 18
17 18 18 17
14 16
15 13
11 11
9
6
0
Male Female Syria Sudan South Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Yemen Total
Sudan
5.5 Respondents’ skills compared with required skills

Employed respondents were asked to evaluate their current skills levels compared with the required level at their work
for ten important skills, as summarized in figure 42. As many as 90 per cent believe that their skills are adequate or
higher than those required by their jobs. The most reported deficiencies were in physical skills (strength and dexterity),
foreign languages and computer skills.
Figure 42. Respondent’s skills compared with required skills at work (%).
Foreign language 3 9 9 79
Physical 11 79 9 2
(strength and dexterity)
Computer 2 12 8 78
Literacy 13 50 7 31
Numeracy 13 51 6 31
Problem-solving 9 58 5 28
Communication 11 68 4 17
Team-working 14 60 4 22
Customer handling 15 60 2 22
Vocational/technical 24 70 2 5
Access to and
demand for services
This section presents the results of the study about financial and social services available for refugees or which they
perceive as accessible. It also examines the services that are perceived as most important by the refugees and asylum
seekers in Egypt.
6.1 Financial services

6.1.1 Bank accounts
The results in figure 43 show that a very small percentage

of refugees interviewed or one of their household members
have a bank account or an account in other financial institu-
tions in Egypt (only 1.1 per cent). The highest percentage of
refugees with bank accounts were recorded for Syrian refu-
gees (1.5 per cent) and South Sudanese (1.1 per cent), and for
refugees living in Alexandria (1.5 per cent), while the lowest
percentage was recorded for refugees living in Damietta (0.4
per cent); no Yemenis or Somalis had an account.
Figure 43. Percentages of refugees with bank accounts in Egypt.
Male 1.3
Female 0.9
Syria 1.5
South Sudan 1.1
Ethiopia 1.0
Eritrea 0.7
Sudan 0.5
Somalia
Yemen
Greater Cairo 1.1

Alexandria 1.5
Damietta 0.4
Total 1.1
6.1.2 Perception about available sources of loans

Respondents were asked if they thought they could apply for loans, other than from relatives or friends, in Egypt and the
possible sources that would be available for these loans. As shown in figure 44.A, only 6 per cent of respondents believe
that they can apply for a loan in Egypt if they need to. The percentage varies from 8 per cent among Syrian refugees to
0 per cent among Somalis.
As shown in Figure 44.B, the available sources of loans for those who believe they can apply for a loan, as perceived by
refugees, are NGOs, associations and microfinance organizations (76 per cent), commercial banks (36 per cent) and
business incubators (14 per cent).
Figure 44.A. Can you apply for a loan, other than from relatives, if you need to? (%).
100
97 97
96 96
92 93 93
8 7 7 4 3 3 4
Syria Sudan Yemen South Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Total
Sudan
Figure 44.B. Perceived available sources of loans (%).
NGOs, associations and microfinance organization

76
Commercial banks
36
Business incubators
14
Social Fund
10
Private credit institutions
4
Other
3
6.2 Youth centres
Respondents were asked if they were allowed to join a youth centre and use its facilities. As shown in figure 45, only 10
per cent of refugees replied positively, while 60 per cent do not think they can, and 30 per cent do not know if they can.
Male refugees, Sudanese and refugees living in Greater Cairo are slightly more likely to believe that they can join a youth
centre and use its facilities than females and refugees of other nationalities and regions of residence.
Figure 45. Are you allowed to join a youth centre and use its facilities? (%).
Male 11 59 30
Female 10 61 30
Sudan 13 63 24
Ethiopia 12 63 25
Syria 9 59 32
Yemen 9 51 40
Eritrea 8 60 33
Somalia 4 82 14
Greater Cairo 11 62 28
Alexandria 9 58 34
Damietta 9 18 74
Total 10 60 30
6.3 Literacy and Arabic language programmes

Respondents were asked if they knew of any available programmes to learn to read and write, or to learn Arabic. As
shown in figure 46, around one quarter of refugees (24 per cent) know about literacy and/or Arabic language pro-
grammes available for them.
Figure 46. Percentages of refugees who know about literacy and Arabic language programmes.
Male 27 27
Female 21 21
Syria 27 26
South Sudan 23 22
Sudan 23 24
Ethiopia 20 22
Yemen 20 17
Somalia 20 24
Eritrea 18 22
Greater Cairo 26 26
Alexandria 12 13
Damietta 20 14
Total 24 24
6.4 Vocational training programmes

As shown in figure 47, three out of ten refugees are aware of vocational training programmes available to them in Egypt,
while the remaining 70 per cent do not know about any such programmes.
Male refugees, Syrians and refugees living in Alexandria are slightly more likely to know about vocational training pro-
grammes than females and refugees of other nationalities and regions of residence.
Figure 47. Do refugees have freedom of movement in Egypt? (%).
Male 82 18
Female 78 22
Yemen 93 7
Eritrea 91 9
Syria 90 10
Somalia 78 22
Sudan 68 32
South Sudan 61 39
Ethiopia 47
Greater Cairo 79 21
Alexandria 90 10
Damietta 97 3
Total 80 20
6.5 Freedom of movement in Egypt
Respondents were asked if refugees had freedom of movement in Egypt. As presented in figure 48, eight out of ten ref-
ugees believe that they have freedom of movement while 20 per cent disagree.
Figure 48. Do you know if there are vocational training programmes available to you? (%).
Male 34 66
Female 26 74
Yemen 35 65
Eritrea 28 72
Syria 26 74
Somalia 24 76
Sudan 23 77
South Sudan 23 77
Ethiopia 23 77
Greater Cairo 29 71
Alexandria 40 60
Damietta 37 63
Total 30 70
6.6 Most needed services

Respondents were asked about services and whether they need them in Egypt or not. The results are summarized in
figure 49 and suggest that the most needed services for refugees are vocational training, computer training and under-
standing Egyptian laws and regulations for foreigners.
Figure 49. Services needed for refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt (%).
Vocational training
47
Computer and internet training
45
Understanding laws and regulations for foreigners
44
Basic business management training
34
Asylum seeker
Participating in youth centers activities

29
Learning Arabic language
26
Learning how to manage household finances
22
Literacy programs
21
Having a mentor for my business
13
Other services
6
6.6.1 By country of origin

As shown in table 3.A, there are some variations in the most needed services perceived by refugees, depending on their
country of origin. For example, vocational training is the most needed service for refugees from Syria, Sudan, Ethiopia,
Eritrea and Somalia, while computer and internet training is the most important for South Sudanese refugees, and un-
derstanding laws and regulations for foreigners is the most important for Yemenis.
Table 3.A. Needed services by country of origin (%).
Country of origin
Syria Sudan South Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Yemen

Sudan
Vocational training 42 54 38 48 63 60 51
Computer and internet training 42 49 40 48 58 45 46

Understanding laws and regulations for
foreigners 41 51 39 33 53 54 57
Basic business management training 31 40 24 21 45 45 49
Participating in youth centre activities 28 29 22 14 43 29 39
Learning Arabic 21 26 33 43 42 25 15
Literacy programmes 20 21 28 34 22 21 12
Learning how to manage household
finances 19 29 19 13 30 21 20
Having a mentor for my business 9 22 14 9 19 13 19
Other services 7 6 4 3 8 7 10
6.6.2 By gender
There are also some variations in the most needed services by gender, as shown in table 3.B. For example, vocational
training is the most needed service for male refugees, while understanding laws and regulations for foreigners is the
most important for females.
Table 3.B. Needed services by gender (%).
Gender
Male Female
Vocational training 49 44
Computer and internet training 47 43
Understanding laws and regulations for foreigners 44 45
Basic business management training 34 34
Participating in youth centre activities 31 26
Learning Arabic 28 24
Learning how to manage household finances 20 23
Literacy programmes 22 21
Having a mentor for my business 15 11
Other services 6 7
Community inclusion
This section provides information about the integration between refugees and asylum seekers and their host Egyptian
communities. The results include reasons for choosing Egypt as a country of asylum, whether refugees and asylum
seekers face any kind of discrimination or racism in Egypt and whether they have equal rights as Egyptians in accessing
public services.
7.1 Reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum
Respondents mentioned many reasons for Figure 50. Reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum (%).
choosing Egypt for asylum. As shown in fig-
ure 50, the most frequent reasons include
closeness or easy access (59 per cent), safety Closeness/Easy access
59
(45 per cent), good treatment of refugees
Safety
(32 per cent) and low cost of living (17 per
45
cent). It is worth noting that 15 per cent of Good treatment of refugees
refugees chose Egypt for asylum because of 32
the good care of refugees and the presence Low cost of living
of the UNHCR. 17
Taking care of Refugees/ UNHCR
15
Accessibility to Europe
10
It was the only available option
4
Egyptian people are kind/ have similar culture
4
Have relatives or friends in Egypt
4
Work or study
1
Other reasons
0.2
7.1.1 By country of origin

As table 4 shows, the main reason for choosing Egypt for asylum for refugees from Syria, Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia
and Eritrea is the closeness or easy access of Egypt to their home countries. On the other hand, the main reason for
Somali and Yemeni refugees is safety.
Table 4. Reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum
Country of origin

Sudan
Closeness or easy access 56.1 70.4 66.8 42.3 58.2 39.7 53.6 58.6
Safety 44.7 43.8 43.5 33.4 45.9 44.1 62.7 44.7
Good treatment of refugees 42.3 19.7 21.1 9.1 30.8 19.8 40.8 31.8
Low cost of living 16.1 16.5 22.5 11.9 17.8 20.7 12.0 16.8
Taking care of refugees/UNHCR 15.4 12.8 16.5 10.1 15.8 11.0 26.0 14.9
Accessibility to Europe 8.0 11.9 12.2 22.3 4.1 17.6 2.4 9.7
It was the only available option 5.7 2.2 1.6 3.0 2.7 8.8 3.1 4.2
Egyptian people are kind/similar

6.4 0.6 0.0 0.0 1.4 0.0 10.4 3.7
culture
Have relatives or friends in Egypt 6.1 0.7 0.5 1.0 3.4 2.2 3.5 3.6
Work or study 0.8 0.9 0.5 0.0 2.7 2.2 02. 1.1
Other reasons 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.7 0.0 5.2 0.2
7.2 Discrimination
Respondents were asked if they faced racism or discrimination because of their origin. As presented in figure 51 ,40 per
cent of the respondents reported that this is the case.
The results show large variations according to the refugee’s nationality. Refugees from South Sudan (80 per cent),
Sudan (79 per cent) and Ethiopia (68 per cent) are more likely than other nationalities to report facing racism and dis-
crimination, while few Yemeni and Syrian refugees were concerned by the problem. It was found that refugees living in
Greater Cairo are more likely to report discrimination and racism than those in Alexandria and Damietta (44, 16 and 12
per cent, respectively).
Figure 51. Do you face racism or discrimination in Egypt because of your origin?
Male 37 63
Female 45 55
South Sudan 80 20
Sudan 79 21
Ethiopia 68 32
Eritrea 58 42
Somalia 55 45
Syria 12 88
Yemen 6 94
Greater Cairo 44 56
Alexandria 15 85
Damietta 12 88
Total 40 60
As shown in figure 52, refugees and asylum seekers who reported facing racism or discrimination mentioned that this
usually happens within their neighbourhood (85 per cent), in transportation (71 per cent), at the workplace or while
searching for a job (22 per cent for each), in addition to some other places and contexts.
Figure 52. Places where refugees face racism or discrimination (%).
Within my neighborhood
85
In transportation
71
At workplace
22
When searching for a job
22
At health facilities
16
When trying to enroll my kids in school
5
Other
1
7.3 Access to public services

Respondents were asked if they have equal rights in accessing some of the public services in Egypt. As shown in figure
53, around a quarter of respondents (24 per cent) replied that they enjoy the rights for suitable job opportunities, and
18 per cent said they have access to appropriate education for themselves and their children. However, only 3 per cent
reported that they can subscribe to youth centres, 2 per cent have access to medical insurance, and only 1 per cent have
access to social insurance.
Figure 53. Services available for refugees in Egypt (%).
86 88
74
70
60
24 23
21
18
11 11
6
3 2 1
Suitable job Appropriate education Subscription to Medical insurance Social insurance

opportunities youth centers
Table 5 shows some variations in the services available for refugees by gender and country of origin. The service most
frequently mentioned by male refugees, and by refugees from Syria, Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea, was suit-
able job opportunities, while females and Somali and Yemeni refugees most frequently reported appropriate education.
Table 5. Available services by gender and country of origin.
Gender Country of origin
Male Female Syria Sudan South Ethiopia Eritrea Somalia Yemen

Sudan
Suitable job opportunities 32.3 17.8 32.6 22.2 20.2 14.2 17.9 11.8 18.7
Appropriate education 25.1 21.1 29.6 19.2 20.0 5.4 12.6 23.4 22.4
Subscription to youth
centres 3.9 3.3 3.7 4.3 6.2 2.6 0.0 0.0 2.5
Medical insurance 2.7 2.9 2.5 3.6 3.0 4.6 0.0 5.1 0.2
Social insurance 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.0 1.2 0.0 0.7 2.5 0.0
Conclusion and
recommendations
Refugees and asylum seekers can and should contribute towards the social and economic development of their
destination country, making use of their acquired skills, experiences, willingness to work and other abilities. While for
refugees in Egypt, there is no encampment policy but they are allowed to integrate in the Egyptian social fabric, they
do face significant socio-economic challenges. Refugees and asylum seekers report many positive sides of Egypt ‘s
hospitality, but discrimination is perceived as high. Access to employment is of paramount importance. More than 80
per cent of refugee households report wage employment as their main source of income, but this comes with lower
earnings. Virtually all refugees who are employed are in the informal sector, and their work is conducted outside any
legal protection or social insurance coverage. Many struggle to find work, with long spells in unemployment, or have
to settle for jobs that are below their skills level.
Vocational training is highly requested and sought after, but at the same time a huge loss of human capital can be
observed with highly skilled refugees underemployed or unemployed. Vocational training for skills in demand with-
in the local market should be considered, together with soft skills specifically targeting youth and women. Specific
short training to update existing skills should also be considered, while generic training, missing a direct livelihood
outcome, should be avoided.
Computer skills and job-search assistance are the services most requested from refugees who hope to access em-
ployment or improve their current working conditions. Entrepreneurship support also appears as a priority to raise
the very low levels of entrepreneurialism found in the refugee population, resulting from a lack of access to formal
banking services, among other things. Though the number of refugees engaged in self-employment is relatively low,
generally, the interest of refugees for entrepreneurial activities is high. The (few) refugees who do run businesses
may be enrolled to help as mentors and coaches to navigate an often challenging economic environment. There ap-
pears to be a potential to promote geographical mobility towards governorates in Egypt with tighter labour markets,
particularly Damietta and the Suez Canal – refugees residing there (mostly Syrians) display much higher employment
rates and labour earnings. High levels of incapacity for work due to long-term illness or injury warrant dedicated
social assistance. Highly skilled refugees (those with tertiary education, and/or prior experience in professional and
other high-skill occupations) would warrant job search and soft skills support to allow them to secure jobs where they
can apply their potential to their own and Egypt’s benefit.
The report shows how people UNHCR serves constitute a heterogeneous group of people with different levels of
literacy, educational attainments and skills. It is, therefore, crucial to have detailed socio-economic information about
refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt and to design well targeted interventions that can address the different needs
of potential beneficiaries.
Communication with communities could be improved, making sure that all members of the communities are reached,
paying special attention to women, youth and members of small communities and nationals of sub-Saharan coun-
tries who do not speak Arabic. There is also a clear need, especially for Yemenis and women, to better understand the
laws and regulations that apply to foreigners.
The request to continue with advocacy efforts for more socio-economic inclusion is high and remains a priority.

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Copyright © International Labour Organization 2023

First published 2023

Include ISBN 9789220387818 (print)

Dr. Hanan Hamdan

1.2.1 Sample design and selection 13

2. Respondents’ background characteristics 16

2.1 Gender, age, nationality 16

3.1 Sources of earnings 26

4.1 Employment status 34

4.6 Sector of activity 44

5. Skills and qualifications 52

5.1 Language skills 52

6. Access to and demand for services 58

6.1 Financial services 58

6.1.1 Bank accounts 58

6.2 Youth centres 60

6.6.1 By country of origin 63

7.1 Reasons for choosing Egypt for asylum 66

7.1.1 By country of origin 67

8. Conclusion and recommendations 70

4.6 Sector of activity 39

Looking at their employment status, 41 per

Almost all working refugees are employed

Understand refugees’ socio-economic and demographic characteristics and living conditions in

Understand refugees’ skills sets and career development needs

1.2.2 Sampling weights

1.2.3 Questionnaire design

1.2.4 Data collection

2.1 Gender, age, nationality

As presented in figure 1, the population of refugees and asylum

The sample included 26 nationalities, but only seven account for

Figure 1. Selected socio-economic indicators (%).

Age group 35-44 14 16

2.2 Duration of stay in Egypt

Figure 2. Duration of stay in Egypt in years (%).

South Sudan 12 49 20 19 7.0

Greater Cairo 12 35 34 19 7.0

2.3 Geographic mobility

The results, summarized in figure 3, showed that ref-

Figure 3 also shows that the choice of the place of res-

8% I found a job here

I think I can find a job here

I get help from my family or my community of origin

I get support from people outside my community of origin

I need to provide support to family living in the same area

2.4 Educational attainment

The results in figure 4 show that around 12 per cent of ref-

Male refugees have only a slightly better educational at-

Figure 4. Educational attainment (%).

70% Upper Intermediate

2.5 Literacy and numeracy

Figure 5. Literacy and numeracy (%).

2.6 ICT use

Figure 6. Mobile phones ownership and Internet access (%).

Figure 7. Type of dwelling (%).

Greater Cairo 84 15 0.6

2.8 Cost of rent

Almost all refugees (98 per cent) live in rented dwellings.

2.9 Mean household4 size

Figure 10. Mean household size by country of origin and region.

Greater Cairo 3.6

The mean household size for refugees in Alexandria and

3.1 Sources of earnings

Figure 11. Sources of refugees’ household earnings (%).