Egypt has undertaken significant reforms to improve the economic participation and empowerment of women, and has made progress in areas such as education and health. However, persistent challenges remain. This chapter provides an overview of the report, summarising the status of women’s economic empowerment in Egypt. It outlines the progress achieved, the remaining barriers, and the recommendations put forward throughout the publication to address them.
Women’s Economic Empowerment in Egypt
Abstract
Egypt has made significant progress in improving educational attainment for girls, with gender parity achieved in many levels of education. Ongoing efforts are helping to close remaining gaps, particularly among rural and lower-income communities, where dropout rates remain high.
While women’s participation in the labour force remains below potential, with 17% of women participating in the labour force in 2024 compared to 70% of men, recent reforms and national strategies are helping to address structural and social barriers. Greater support for women's employment can yield important economic gains.
Women’s economic participation is influenced not only by economic conditions but also by social norms, legal frameworks, and cultural factors that shape opportunities and constraints.
Women's representation in leadership and decision-making roles is gradually increasing, supported by public initiatives such as the “Women in Leadership Programme” and governance reforms. Continued efforts can further expand opportunities for qualified women to contribute at senior levels.
Women's entrepreneurship is gaining momentum, with increased institutional support and development financing. Further strengthening women’s access to finance, digital tools and networks can accelerate growth of women-led businesses, particularly in underserved areas.
The Government of Egypt recognises the importance of reducing the unequal burden of unpaid care and domestic work, which remains a key barrier to women’s full economic participation. Women spend nearly 5 hours per day more than men on unpaid care and domestic work. Further expanding access to affordable childcare and promoting equitable caregiving roles are important next steps.
Egypt is actively leveraging trade, foreign direct investment and development co-operation to promote inclusive growth. Aligning these channels more closely with gender equality objectives can help unlock new economic opportunities for women and contribute to national development goals.
Over the past decade, Egypt has undertaken significant reforms to improve the economic participation and empowerment of women. While the country has made progress in areas such as education and health, persistent challenges remain, including gaps in labour force participation, wage equality, and access to decision-making positions. Women’s economic participation is influenced not only by economic conditions but also by social norms, legal frameworks, and cultural factors that shape opportunities and constraints.
Advancing gender equality in the economy, society and families is a prerequisite for achieving Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and can generate substantial macroeconomic gains. As in most countries in the world, and across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, women in Egypt do not have the same opportunities as men to contribute to and benefit from economic activities. The Gender Gap Index shows that Egypt has closed 40.6% of its gender gap in economic participation and opportunity, ranking 140 out of 146 countries in this subindex (World Economic Forum, 2024[1]). A 2024 World Bank study reveals that closing the gender gap in labour force participation could increase Egypt’s GDP by 56% (Fiuratti, Pennings and Torres Coronado, 2024[2]). While significant progress has been made, Egyptian women continue to have to navigate structural and social obstacles to realising their full economic potential. These dynamics are unfolding against a background of broader structural megatrends – including demographic change, digitalisation, shifts in global value chains, and the green transition – which create both new opportunities and emerging risks for women’s economic participation in Egypt.
The OECD has long championed the cause of gender equality. Building on its extensive work in this area, the 2013 OECD Recommendation of the Council on Gender Equality in Education, Employment and Entrepreneurship calls on members and partners who adhere to the recommendation to enhance gender equality in education, employment and entrepreneurship. The recommendation also invites adherents to co-operate with developing and emerging countries to support their efforts to address gender equality, including by “increasing the gender equality and women’s empowerment focus of aid, especially in the economic and productive sectors” (OECD, 2017[3]).
This report offers a comprehensive strategic framework aimed at unlocking women's economic potential so that they can fully contribute to Egypt’s sustainable development while benefiting from its economic and social advancements.1 By assessing reforms, laws and public policies implemented in recent years against international best practice and providing targeted recommendations, it seeks to support Egyptian policymakers in implementing the National Strategy for the Empowerment of Egyptian Women 2030 (Government of Egypt, 2017[4]). Part I of the report (Women’s economic empowerment in Egypt: today and tomorrow) sets the scene by presenting data on recent trends in women’s economic activity in Egypt, and providing a comprehensive overview of the findings and main recommendations emerging (Chapter 1). Chapter 2 explores opportunities for advancing gender equality presented by emerging megatrends, such as the demographic, digital and green transitions and globalisation. Part II covers an enabling environment for women’s economic empowerment: it provides a comprehensive review of legal reforms to promote women’s economic empowerment (Chapter 3), the need for and ways to achieve a culture of equality (Chapter 4) and continuing to improve access to education and skills (Chapter 5). Part III is all about creating employment opportunities responsive to women’s needs, with the first step being a more equal sharing of care responsibilities (Chapter 6), promoting gender equality in the labour market (Chapter 7), and strengthening women’s entrepreneurship: enhancing financial literacy, access to finance, and tailored and accessible entrepreneurship programmes (Chapter 8). Finally, Part IV highlights the importance of international engagement in supporting women’s economic empowerment, emphasising the respective roles of foreign direct investment (Chapter 9) and development co-operation (Chapter 10) in reinforcing Egypt’s national efforts to create a more inclusive and competitive society.
Egypt has made significant strides in narrowing gender gaps in education participation, attainment and performance
Over the past decade, Egypt has made important progress in improving educational outcomes for all children as part of its broader education reforms – including programmes under Egypt Vision 2030 – with notable strides in advancing girls’ education (Chapter 5). Initiatives and programmes aimed at encouraging girls’ educational enrolment have helped close the gender gap in primary education enrolment (OECD, Forthcoming[5]). Recent campaigns led by the Ministry of Education, such as the Girls Education Initiative, have particularly targeted rural areas. Egypt has seen steadily growing total enrolment in education over the last 20 years across primary, secondary and tertiary levels, and today women in Egypt are more educated than ever. In tertiary education, female students now slightly outnumber their male counterparts, reflecting the impact of targeted government initiatives such as scholarship programmes and awareness campaigns to promote girls’ education (NCW, 2024[6]).
Women’s educational attainment has also risen markedly in the country. In 2012, among people aged 25 and over, 51% of men and 39% of women in Egypt had at least an upper secondary education. By 2023, the shares reached 61% for men and 51% for women (World Bank, 2025[7]). In 2025, the tertiary gross enrolment rate reached 39% for women and 37% for men, although it remains lower than the rate for women in most other MENA countries (Figure 1.1). The share of women who obtained a general secondary education certificate was 55%. Women’s educational attainment is higher than men’s in tertiary education (OECD, Forthcoming[5]). While women represented 39% of students enrolled in higher education in 2023/2024, they made up 53% of higher education graduates in 2023 (CAPMAS, 2024[8]).
Gross enrolment (%) in tertiary education, 2025 or latest year available
Note: Gross enrolment is the total enrolment, regardless of age, divided by the population of the age group that officially corresponds to the level of education shown.
Source: World Bank (2025[9]), World Development Indicators (DataBank), https://databank.worldbank.org/source/world-development-indicators (accessed August 2025).
Enhanced participation in education at all levels has increased women’s performance outcomes. Notably, women’s illiteracy rates have fallen markedly: in 2022, 69% of women aged 15+ were literate, up from 63% in 2013 (World Bank, 2025[10]). Gender gaps in school performance in Egypt are small, with girls outperforming boys in subjects like mathematics and science, as well as in the national secondary school leaving exam. However, performance by both girl and boy students in international assessments remains low (see Chapter 5). The share of women aged 25 years and older with a tertiary degree increased from 10.1% in 2006 to 15.6% in 2021 (UNESCO, 2024[11]), only slightly below the overall average of 17.1% for both men and women. Despite girls' academic successes, they tend to choose different educational pathways to boys. Within technical schools, for example, girls are over-represented in commercial programmes (58% of students) but under-represented in agricultural programmes (14% of students) (Ministry of Education and Technical Education, 2021[12]).
Gender gaps in educational outcomes reflect location and socio-economic background
Despite progress on reducing the overall gender gap in education, there are still significant disparities based on socio-economic status and geographic location. Adolescent girls from low-income households, especially those whose parents have limited education, are particularly at risk of dropping out of school. In 2018, 75% of the 2 million illiterate young women aged 15-29 lived in rural areas (World Bank, 2018[13]). More recent CAPMAS data from 2022 confirm that rural Upper Egypt remains the area with the highest risk of female school dropouts. Dropout rates increase considerably at secondary level, with 24.1% of girls leaving school in 2021 (compared to 22.7% of boys), significantly up from just 1.6% in lower secondary (World Bank, 2025[14]), see Chapter 5. The dropout rates for girls in primary school and preparatory school in 2023/2024 were much lower (CAPMAS, 2023/2024[15]). While boys often drop out due to poor performance or work, 53% of girls leave school due to marriage (Ministry of Education and Technical Education, 2023[16]) (Chapters 4 and 5). Early school leaving negatively impacts skills development and future financial outcomes, as well the economic and social development of Egypt as a whole. Access to early childhood education (ECE) remains low, with fewer than one in ten children aged 0-3 enrolled in organised ECE programmes, limiting both women’s labour market participation and children’s long-term learning outcomes (Chapter 6). Gross enrolment in pre-primary education stood at 29% for both boys and girls (World Bank, 2025[10]).
The weight of traditional gender norms in society contributes to these gender-based imbalances. Although legal reforms have reduced the incidence of child marriage, early marriage remains common, particularly in rural and Upper Egypt. According to the latest data available, 26% of girls aged 15-19 are married,2 compared to 1% of boys (Figure 1.2), reflecting persistent socio-economic pressures despite ongoing awareness campaigns and legal measures (OECD Development Centre/OECD, 2023[17]). This is higher than in most countries of the MENA region, and slightly above averages observed across Africa, Asia and globally (Figure 1.2) (Chapter 4). Although the adolescent birth rate has declined from 43.8 births per 1 000 girls in 2020 to 42 in 2023 (World Bank, 2026[18]), it remains 7 points above the MENA average (World Bank, 2023[19]), leading to poorer education and economic outcomes for young mothers (Arceo-Gomez and Campos-Vazquez, 2014[20]).
Child marriage rate as % of boys and girls aged 15-19 years-old
Note: Percentage of boys and girls aged 15-19 years who have been or are still married, divorced, or widowed.
Source: OECD (2023[21]), Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) 2023 (dataset), https://doi.org/10.1787/33beb96e-en.
The available literature also associates high dropout rates in Egypt with household poverty, parental literacy, and various dimensions of school quality, including time to learn, material resources, and teacher quality (Lloyd et al., 2003[22]; Zaki Ewiss, Abdelgawad and Elgendy, 2019[23]; Selim and Rezk, 2023[24]). Government initiatives such as the No Illiteracy by 2030 Programme and campaigns supported by the National Council for Women (NCW) aim to address these structural barriers. However, in the face of growing student numbers, limited infrastructure and teaching staff, and the low quality of instruction, some of the potential of Egyptian girls and boys could remain untapped (Chapter 5). Under the Haya Karima project, the government has expanded access to safe pre-university education by reducing classroom overcrowding and improving school infrastructure, including the construction or replacement of over 15 000 classrooms and the rehabilitation of 1 300 schools, more than half of which are located in Upper Egypt.
Women’s significant educational advances can be translated into stronger labour market outcomes
Despite their educational achievements, women’s labour force participation remains significantly lower than men’s (Chapter 7). Women’s employment rates have stagnated in recent years – in 2023, only 16.5% of women participated in the labour force, compared to 71.3% of men (Figure 1.2). However, according to data provided by CAPMAS, this rate reached 16.9% of women in 2024 versus 70.3% of men (CAPMAS, 2024[25]). Both figures reflect a persistent gap in labour force participation, indicating significant scope for progress to align with regional and global trends. However, according to the NCW, recent government initiatives – including targeted job placement programmes and financial incentives for women entrepreneurs – are seeking to improve women’s labour market outcomes and to reverse this trend, although structural barriers remain high. Among the small share of women who were active in Egypt’s labour market in 2024, close to 18% were unemployed, compared to a rate of almost 5% for men (Figure 1.3). Despite both women’s and men’s significant improvement in educational attainment, unemployment remains high among highly educated women in Egypt (OECD, 2024[26]).
The differences in men and women’s employment patterns reflect both demand- and supply-side barriers. On the demand side, key challenges include structural issues such as labour market segmentation, low job creation in the sectors where women are typically employed and persistent wage gaps. Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows are heavily concentrated in male-dominated, capital-intensive sectors such as hydrocarbons, construction and heavy manufacturing, limiting the extent to which current investment patterns create quality employment opportunities for women (see Chapter 9). On the supply side, social norms, unpaid care responsibilities and limited access to childcare facilities constrain women’s ability to engage in paid work (Chapters 4 and 6). Government efforts, such as the National Strategy for the Empowerment of Egyptian Women 2030 (Government of Egypt, 2017[4]) and the expansion of childcare facilities through the Ministry of Social Solidarity, aim to reduce these barriers. The Ministry of Social Solidarity, through partnerships with private actors, has also expanded nursery facilities and flexible childcare services to encourage mothers’ participation in the workforce (Chapter 5).
Labour force participation and unemployment rate by country and by gender, 2024
Note: The labour force participation rate is defined as the share of women/men in the female/male population of working age (age 15+) who engage actively in the labour market, either by working or looking for work. The unemployment rate shows the share of women/men who are part of the labour force yet unemployed, i.e. wanting to work and actively seeking employment.
Source: : ILO (2024[27]), ILO Modelled Estimates and Projections database (ILOEST), https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/ (accessed on 9 August 2024); ILO (2025[28]), Labour Force Statistics (LFS and RURBAN databases), https://ilostat.ilo.org/methods/concepts-and-definitions/description-labour-force-statistics/.
Young women in Egypt are also more likely to be not in employment, education or training (NEET). In 2024, 36.3% of 15-24 year-old women were NEET, compared to 14.9% of their male counterparts (ILO, 2025[28]). Those who are NEET are at higher risk of experiencing social exclusion and poverty and of lacking the skills needed to improve their economic situation. Engagement in unpaid care and domestic work likely has a negative impact on girls’ participation in education and employment.
Despite the country’s growing and more educated working-age population, labour market mismatches have led to high youth unemployment, especially among women. Creating enough jobs, especially quality jobs, for this expanding workforce is a major challenge, both for Egypt and the wider MENA region. Due to consistently high fertility rates over past decades, Egypt has not yet benefitted from a “demographic dividend”3 (Chapter 2). With fertility rates only recently beginning to decline, large numbers of young, educated people are still entering the labour market. While this presents strong potential for economic growth, there is currently a mismatch between the number of job seekers and the available employment opportunities. This leads to high youth unemployment, especially among young women: in 2024, 40.3% of women aged 15-29 were unemployed, compared to 10.7% of young men (CAPMAS, 2024[25]). Their absorption into productive employment is essential to harness any potential demographic dividend (Chapter 2).
By overcoming gender bias in educational choices and shifting traditional gender norms, Egypt has a significant opportunity to enable more women to access high-quality jobs, including in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) sectors. With close to half of STEM graduates being women (see Chapter 5), Egypt has almost achieved gender balance in STEM education (UNESCO, 2021[29]). However, the picture is different when it comes to employment. In 2020, approximately 38% of Egypt's scientific professionals were women (UNESCO Arab Science Podium, 2023[30]). This points to significant numbers of female STEM graduates not going into professional practice after graduation, although the trend is less marked than for the overall female population, indicating that women with STEM degrees are more likely to remain in the labour market. Importantly, participation varies significantly across STEM subfields: it is higher in information and communications technology than in engineering and mathematics (Chapter 7). This under-representation of women limits their access to well-paid jobs, leadership roles and innovation-driven careers, and can be attributed to socio-cultural factors, such as gender norms and gaps in policies that support women’s integration into STEM professions. Culturally sensitive policies would be needed to address both structural barriers and workplace inclusivity, ensuring greater opportunities for women in these fields. However, ongoing efforts, such as the Women in Technology programme supported by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, aim to facilitate the transition of female STEM graduates into the workforce.
Women need greater access to vocational training and reskilling. Although more than half of students in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) are female (53%) (Assi and Marcati, 2020[31]), women are concentrated in specific fields, restricting their access to higher-productivity and better-paid technical occupations. Women also lag behind men on foundational and advanced digital skills, which poses a growing barrier to accessing emerging job opportunities in an increasingly digitalised economy. Reskilling also remains limited for women, reducing their ability to adapt to evolving labour market demand. Egypt’s growing focus on climate adaptation and green industries could offer emerging employment opportunities for women, especially in renewable energy, sustainable agriculture and green services, if supported by targeted skills development (Chapter 2).
Women’s representation in corporate leadership can still be increased
Access to management positions in companies is still very limited for women in Egypt. In 2022, only 6% of companies in Egypt had a woman as top manager (OECD Development Centre, 2023[32]) and 20% of senior and middle management positions were held by women (Figure 1.4). Restrictive social norms contribute to this under-representation in leadership positions (Chapter 4). In Egypt, 75% of the population believe that men make better business executives than women, compared to 60% in the MENA region and 42% globally. In addition, 90% of the population agree that when employment is scarce, men should have more right to a job than women (versus 73% of people in MENA and 45% worldwide) (OECD Development Centre, 2023[32]). To address these gaps, the NCW has launched initiatives such as the Women in Leadership programme, which provides mentorships and training for female professionals, as well as corporate governance reforms to increase women’s representation in senior roles (NCW, 2024[6]; OECD Development Centre, 2023[32]) Public policy needs to address both the structural and social barriers to women entering the labour market to better develop their potential and use their talents.
Share of women in senior and middle management positions (%), 2025 or latest year available
Note: Data for Lebanon and Tunisia refer to 2019; for Türkiye to 2020; for Iraq to 2021; for Colombia and Chile to 2022; for Jordan to 2023; for Egypt, Italy and Spain to 2024; and for Costa Rica to 2025.
Source: ILO (2025[33]), SDG Indicator 5.5.2 - Proportion of women in senior and middle management positions (%) annual (ILOSTAT data explorer), https://rshiny.ilo.org/dataexplorer99/?lang=en&segment=indicator&id=SDG_B552_NOC_RT_A&channel=ilostat.
Women tend to earn less than men
As in other MENA countries, gender disparities in earnings remain significant in Egypt, and progress on closing the gap is limited. Egypt ranks 140th out of 146 countries for income equality, with women earning five times less than men (World Economic Forum, 2024[1]). This disparity is driven not only by low female labour force participation, but also by the concentration of women in part-time, low-paid and informal jobs (ILO, 2021[34]).
Although the gender gap in hourly wages has narrowed, partly due to the high education level of employed women and their concentration in the public sector, overall income gaps persist. Recent data show that women in the private sector earn only 77% of men’s median wages, underscoring the persistence of substantial gender pay gaps despite improvements in educational attainment (AlAzzawi and Hlasny, 2025[35]). It is important to acknowledge that women exercise agency in making workforce decisions that align with their own priorities, while also recognising the structural factors that shape these choices.
Occupational segregation further limits women’s earning potential. This often guides women towards sectors with lower earning potential, such as education, agriculture, textiles, and domestic work. It means that women remain under-represented in industry and private formal employment, sectors which offer higher wages and greater career advancement (AlAzzawi and Hlasny, 2025[36]). However, women’s increasing participation in the service sector presents new opportunities for their growth and development in the workforce (Figure 1.5). Women are still over-represented in the public sector (Chapter 7), where working hours, leave policies and perceived job security are often more compatible with prevailing social norms around marriage and caregiving. These patterns reflect deeper structural barriers, including restrictive labour practices, traditional gender roles and the widespread lack of accessible childcare. In response, the government has strengthened workplace regulations, including anti‑harassment provisions, and is conducting public awareness efforts to improve women’s sense of safety and encourage their participation in formal employment.
Employment by sector as a share of the female/male labour force in Egypt, 2010-2022
Source: ILO (2024[27]), ILO Modelled Estimates and Projections database (ILOEST), https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/ (accessed on 9 August 2024); World Bank (2025[37]), Employment by sector (%), https://genderdata.worldbank.org/en/indicator/sl-empl-zs?employment=Services&view=trend&geos=EGY.
More than half of economically active women are in informal employment, although men’s share is higher
Women are less likely to work informally than men. In countries such as Egypt and Morocco, where the rural economy contributes a particularly large share of GDP, informal employment is often high for both men and women (OECD, 2024[26]). In 2023, informal employment in Egypt affected 57% of working women, compared to 67% of men (CAPMAS, 2023[38]). In 2023, the ILO estimated that 62% of female workers, and 73% of male workers, were in informal employment in Egypt – a higher rate for women than for the other MENA countries for which data are available (International Labour Organization, 2023[39]) This is much higher than the share of 52% of women in informal employment recorded in 2019, despite a fall between 2019 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic (Assaad, 2025[40]). Women’s greater job losses in the informal sector during the pandemic were mainly due to unpaid care responsibilities and lack of job protection, with many leaving the workforce altogether (Rodriguez, Genoni and Halim, 2023[41]; Jin and Hofer, 2024[42]).
As they tend to work shorter hours than men, women in informal employment are particularly at risk of working poverty and a lack of access to social protection. Informal workers in Egypt face poorer job quality than formal workers, with low wages, unstable earnings and no social protection. Women in rural areas are more likely to be engaged in informal employment than both urban women and rural men (OECD/ILO/UNDP, 2024[43]). This is influenced by societal norms, caregiving responsibilities and household dynamics, which can limit access to higher-paying opportunities (Chapter 4 and Chapter 6). The incidence of low pay4 is greater for informal than formal workers, and especially for women informal workers (OECD, 2024[26]). Egypt, through the 2019 Social Insurance and Pension Law, has expanded workers’ access to social insurance, including informal workers (see Chapter 3).
Informally employed women are also more likely than men to work in vulnerable occupations (OECD/ILO/CAWTAR, 2020[44]). According to ILO data, women are over-represented in the most vulnerable employment categories: domestic workers, home-based workers or “contributing family workers”.5 This high share of contributing family workers is explained by the importance of agriculture in Egypt: rural women often support the family farming business, with low (or no) wages and on a part-time and seasonal basis (OECD/ILO/CAWTAR, 2020[44]).
Expanding women’s entrepreneurship is a major untapped opportunity for economic growth and innovation
Entrepreneurship remains limited among women in Egypt (Chapter 8). The Global Entrepreneurship Monitoring report found that only 3% of women were actively starting or managing a new business in 2022 (less than 42 months old) compared to more than 9% of men (GEM, 2023[45]). It also found that women’s entrepreneurship in Egypt is significantly below both regional and global standards, with Egypt being among the countries with the lowest female early-stage activity rate (Figure 1.6). The difference widens further with established businesses, with only 1% of Egyptian women reporting having a business that has been going for longer than 42 months, compared to 4% of their male counterparts. This means Egyptian women are 73% less likely than men to be operating an established business, less than the 78% difference found in Morocco, but slightly more than the 68% difference in Tunisia. However, the difference narrows among older generations: women running new businesses are about 9% more likely than their male peers to be in the 35-54 year-old age group, and nearly twice as likely to be aged 55-64 (GEM, 2023[45]) (Chapter 8).
In Egypt, entrepreneurial activity is essentially driven by necessity rather than economic opportunity (OECD, 2024[26]). Women-owned businesses in Egypt tend to cluster in sectors with low entry and exit barriers, such as retail, crafts and agriculture, and are often informal or home-based, which limits their access to resources, including finance and support services (see Chapter 8).
To address these challenges, the government and the NCW have launched targeted programmes to promote women’s entrepreneurship. These include training in digital skills and business management such as the Rabeha UN Joint Programme with the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA), Women Entrepreneurship Network mentorship events, and access to microfinance and mentorship schemes (such as Forsa Economic Empowerment Programme, SheTrades, digital Village Savings and Loans Associations groups) (NCW, 2024[6]).
Early-stage entrepreneurship and established business ownership rates in G7 and comparator countries, 2022
Source: GEM (2023[45]), Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2022/23 Women’s Entrepreneurship Report: Challenging Bias and Stereotypes, http://www.gemconsortium.org/file/open?fileId=51352/.
Women are also much less likely to be self-employed, though women in rural environments are more likely to be self-employed than those in urban areas. In 2024, only 11.2% of self-employed workers were women and women’s self-employment rate was 15.6% of all women in employment, compared to a rate of 24.5% for men (CAPMAS, 2024[25]). Self-employment rates are higher in rural areas, where 19.5% of all employed women were self-employed, compared to 11.3% in urban areas, which may reflect fewer employment opportunities for women in rural areas. However, only 5% of self-employed women in rural areas employ other individuals compared to 10% of those in urban areas. These rates are lower than among men: 13% of self-employed men in rural areas and 20% of those in urban areas employed others in 2024 (CAPMAS, 2024[25]).
Women entrepreneurs face many challenges
Women in Egypt face greater (and interconnected) barriers to entrepreneurship than men. These include limited business experience, weak networks and low awareness of support programmes, especially outside microbusiness schemes (UNIDO, 2017[46]). Furthermore, low levels of financial literacy, particularly among women in rural areas, continue to limit women’s ability to access and use financial services effectively. These challenges are heightened in rural and low-income areas, where outreach is inconsistent and access to education, information, resources and finance is even more limited. Recent initiatives by the MSMEDA have been designed to close these gaps by improving outreach and tailored training for female entrepreneurs. In addition, the Central Bank of Egypt’s Tahweesha Initiative aims to enhance financial inclusion and support for women-led businesses through tailored savings and financial literacy programmes (Chapter 8).
The lack of access to digital technologies hampers women’s ability to start and grow their business, beginning with their access to finance. Digital tools – like the Internet, mobile phones, and online financial services – can expand women’s income, employment opportunities and knowledge, helping to bridge the digital gender divide (OECD, 2018[47]). In the MENA region, digitalisation can help can overcome traditional barriers to women’s employment, such as cultural norms, travel restrictions, limited access to training, and discrimination in hiring and finance (OECD, 2023[48]). However, unless connectivity and digital skills are strengthened, women’s unequal access to digital tools as digitalisation accelerates risks further widening gender gaps in entrepreneurship. Efforts by the Central Bank of Egypt and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology have been instrumental in promoting digital inclusion for women, with initiatives to improve access to digital payments and mobile banking services, as well as increasing digital literacy (Chapter 2).
While mobile broadband coverage is virtually universal in Egypt, a gender and geographical digital divide persists. Women are less likely than men to use the Internet and were 11% less likely than men to adopt mobile internet in 2024 (GSMA, 2025[49]). Rural areas still lag behind on mobile and fixed broadband access (ILO, 2021[34]); (World Bank, 2020[50]). Government-led programmes such as Digital Egypt and the National Council for Women’s partnerships with tech incubators aim to reduce these gaps by supporting female-led digital start-ups and providing online entrepreneurship training (NCW, 2024[6]). Strengthening Internet access in rural areas is crucial to closing these gender gaps.
Societal and cultural factors also challenge women’s entrepreneurship, such as the traditional expectations placed on women within their families. Expectations that women should take on primary caregiving roles can limit the time and resources available to develop their businesses (Hassan and Zaharia, 2021[51]). However, efforts to address these issues are underway, with a growing recognition of the need for childcare support and cultural shifts around female entrepreneurship. Notably, campaigns by the NCW to promote female role models and success stories are helping to change perceptions and inspire more women to pursue entrepreneurial ventures (Chapter 4). One example is the Forsa Economic Empowerment Programme, linking beneficiaries of the Takaful and Karam conditional cash transfer programmes6 to sustainable employment and income-generating opportunities.
Women do the bulk of unpaid care – policies to rebalance responsibilities could yield dividends
The gender gap in unpaid care and domestic work is wider in Egypt than in any other MENA country. In Egypt in 2023, women spent 5.4 hours per day on unpaid care and domestic work compared to 0.6 hours spent by men, which amounted to a gender gap of 4.8 hours per day (Figure 1.7). This compares to an average gap of 1.93 hours per day in OECD countries, and 3.3 hours per day in the African countries included in the Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI)7 database (OECD, 2023[21]). However, OECD calculations using the most recent Egypt Labor Market Panel Survey (2023) reveal important progress, which has been achieved through a reduction in women’s time spent on such work, while men’s has remained the same (CAPMAS, The Economic Research Forum, 2025[52]). Unequal sharing of unpaid care and domestic work limits women’s access to quality paid employment, often pushing them into lower-skilled, part-time or informal jobs with poor conditions and limited long-term savings and social protection (Ferrant, Pesando and Nowacka, 2014[53]).
Average number of hours spent on unpaid domestic and care work per day by gender, 2023
Note: Hours refer to daily hours spent on unpaid care and domestic work (UCDW) by women and men in respective countries. This is based on data from the SDG Indicators Database.
Source: OECD (2023[21]), Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) 2023 (dataset), https://doi.org/10.1787/33beb96e-en..
Factors behind this gender gap in the sharing of responsibilities include a lack of access to paid parental leave and affordable quality childcare. Government-led efforts to improve childcare facilities aim to ease this burden, and include the allocation of EGP 250 million to childcare services in 2022 and the development of 991 nurseries with 3 567 classrooms (Ministry of Social Solidarity, 2023[54]). However, childcare provision does not yet fully cater for demand, with existing facilities having a combined capacity of only around 1.3 million places, for a population of 12.5 million children aged 0-4, leaving the majority of families without access to organised early childhood care services. Article 128 of the new Labour Code introduces one day of paid leave for workers in the event of childbirth. However, the absence of longer paid paternity and parental leave reflects the persistence of norms that view women as the primary child carers and men as the breadwinners. Hence, despite government efforts to expand availability, women still play the main role in the provision of early childcare services, as well as caring for the elderly and people with disabilities. Women shoulder most of the responsibilities for elderly and long-term care, as formal services remain limited, further constraining women’s capacity to participate in paid work (Chapter 6).
These patterns are driven and reinforced by gendered norms and attitudes, which strongly define the partition of roles between men and women within the household, the workplace and the economy at large. Women are frequently expected to prioritise domestic responsibilities over professional aspirations. Results from the World Values Survey show that in 2022, 77% of Egyptian respondents felt that children may be negatively affected when a mother works for pay. While this share is close to the MENA average (70%), it is higher than the averages for Asia (62%) and Africa (55%) (Chapter 4).
Legal frameworks can be undermined by social norms
Egypt has introduced important legal reforms and national strategies to enhance women’s rights and empowerment (Chapter 3). Under the umbrella of Egypt Vision 2030, the National Strategy for the Empowerment of Egyptian Women 2030 (Government of Egypt, 2017[4]) and the National Human Rights Strategy (Government of Egypt, 2021[55]) commit the government to promoting women’s economic empowerment and to protecting and enforcing their rights. In recent years, key legal reforms include the reform to the Investment Law in 2017, which mandates equal investment opportunities for men and women and prohibits discrimination based on gender; the 2017 amendment to the Inheritance Law, which criminalises the denial to women of their legitimate share of inheritance;8 the new Social Insurance Law (2019) which extends social insurance to new categories of employees including temporary and domestic workers; and the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) Resolution which states that the boards of directors of companies and non-banking financial entities require at least 25% of women members or two women (Table 3.1, Chapter 3). Egypt ranked 100th in 2025 on the UNDP’s Gender Inequality Index (UNDP, 2025[56]) , marking an improvement from 121st over a decade earlier, partly attributable to an improved legal framework for gender equality.
However, gender-based discrimination in social institutions remains high in Egypt, especially within the family sphere. Findings from the fifth edition of the SIGI show that the overall level of discrimination in social institutions – laws, norms and practices – remains elevated in Egypt, as indicated by an overall score of 55 (OECD, 2023). These results align with the average across the MENA region (score of 56), though they contrast with the global average score of 29 (OECD, 2023[21]). Discrimination is most evident in the family sphere. Although legal frameworks have evolved, some provisions in line with the Sharia law related to household responsibilities, child custody, divorce and inheritance – such as the gendered allocation of inheritance shares – still limit women’s economic independence and ownership of productive assets (Chapter 3). These barriers prevent many women from fully participating in the economy and building financial independence (OECD, 2023[21]).
While attitudes towards gender equality are improving, engrained social norms often resist change, and hinder the implementation of reforms (Chapter 4). Although fewer people believe men deserve more education or are better leaders than women (Arab Barometer, 2022[57]), and more recognise the benefits of women working (Zeitoun et al., 2023[58]), traditional views remain strong. In 2022, 82% of Egyptians still believed that being a housewife is as fulfilling as working for pay (Figure 1.8), a higher rate than in neighbouring countries such as Tunisia (73%), Jordan (72%), Algeria (70%) and Morocco (62%) (OECD, 2023[59]). Gender norms also contribute to limiting women’s entrepreneurial opportunities, with 43% of women reporting the need for permission from a father or husband to start a business (OECD, 2024[26]). According to consultations with the National Council for Women, awareness campaigns are ongoing to counter these stereotypes, notably by involving female religious leaders, who aim to challenge such norms, and by engaging with male role models and youth programmes promoting role models for girls in both urban and rural areas.
For each statement, share of the population agreeing or strongly agreeing with the statement, 2022
Note: Data are from wave 7 of the World Values Survey (WVS) (2017-2022), and from wave 6 of WVS (2010-2014) when data were not available for wave 7. In Panels A and C, the MENA average is based on data from 14 MENA countries out of 19; data are missing for Bahrain, Djibouti, Oman, Syria and the United Arab Emirates. In Panels B and D, the MENA average is based on data from 13 MENA countries out of 19; data are missing for Bahrain, Djibouti, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Syria and the United Arab Emirates.
Source: OECD (2023[21]), Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) 2023 (dataset), https://doi.org/10.1787/33beb96e-en; Inglehart et al. (2022[60]), World Values Survey: All Rounds – Country-Pooled Datafile Version 3.0, https://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/WVSDocumentationWVL.jsp.
Violence against women hinders their ability to work (OECD, 2023[21]). It can occur in both public and private spaces, with many instances occurring within the family environment and perpetrated by spouses. In addition to psychological and physical trauma, such violence can affect women’s ability to work, resulting in significant economic losses. Women’s economic dependence on their spouses may also hinder their ability to leave harmful relationships, as they may lack the necessary resources or financial independence to do so (OECD, 2023[21]). In Egypt, 35% of women aged 15 to 49 believe that a husband may justify using physical violence against his wife under certain circumstances. While this is slightly below the average for Africa (38%), it is higher than in OECD countries (14%) and globally (30%) (OECD, 2023[61]). The Constitution stipulates the state’s commitment to protect women from all forms of violence. However, the existing legal framework does not criminalise domestic violence. In 2022, a draft law to combat all forms of violence against women was submitted to parliament which, if enacted, would require a robust policy framework to implement it (Chapter 3). The NCW’s campaigns, including hotline services and safe shelters, aim to improve reporting of domestic violence and provide survivors with legal and psychological support (NCW, 2024[6]).
International trade can improve women’s economic outcomes
There is considerable scope for Egypt to reap the full economic benefits arising from access to foreign markets and strengthening the links with global value chains – these benefits could extend to women. Shifts in global value chains may create new export-oriented job opportunities for women, particularly in services and light manufacturing, provided that barriers to skills, mobility and formal employment are addressed (Chapter 2). Trade can substantially improve economic outcomes for women, by increasing employment and wages, creating better jobs, and lowering costs, provided that more private investment fuels the labour market (Korinek, Moïsé and Tange, 2021[62]). It can also pave the way for a transition to more jobs for women in the formal economy, offering better working conditions and access to various benefits. Female workers are less likely to be informally employed if they work in sectors that trade more or are more integrated into global value chains, which means more opportunities for job security, as well as for training and skills development. (World Bank and WTO, 2020[63]). However, trade integration affects men and women differently. A large share of women in Egypt is employed in two sectors highly exposed to trade: recreational services (directly or indirectly related to tourism) and the production of textiles and apparel goods. During the COVID-19 pandemic, international trade was seriously disrupted and women’s specialisation in these areas, which were particularly affected, left them more vulnerable than men. In addition, higher trade costs hinder access to international markets for smaller businesses more than large ones. This affects women more, because they tend to own and lead smaller businesses.
Egypt has already made progress by including gender considerations in some trade promotion policies, though these are still at an early stage and require better implementation. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), in force since January 2021, is expected to enhance regional integration and global competitiveness while helping reduce gender gaps in labour participation and wages. Estimates suggest it could increase wages across Africa by nearly 10%, with particularly strong benefits for women and unskilled workers (Echandi, Maliszewska and Steenbergen, 2022[64]). Complementing this, the AfCFTA Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade, adopted in 2024, promotes equal opportunities and supports inclusive economic transformation (UN ECA, 2024[65]). However, women traders continue to face key barriers, including limited access to trade information, low awareness of AfCFTA provisions, insufficient knowledge of customs procedures, and gaps in export readiness. In Egypt, targeted initiatives are addressing these challenges. Programs such as SheTrades and the Export Development Authority provide export training, while the 50 Million African Women Speak Platform connects women entrepreneurs to markets, finance, and mentoring through a digital network spanning 38 countries, fostering greater participation in international trade (NCW, 2024[6]).
Foreign direct investment can boost women’s economic empowerment, but does not target female-dominated sectors
Foreign direct investment (FDI) is a key driver of sustainable development in Egypt (Chapter 9). Its importance for the domestic economy – measured as the stock of FDI relative to gross domestic product (GDP) – has grown over time, albeit less consistently than the averages for OECD and MENA countries. In 2017, the stock of FDI relative to GDP reached an all-time high of 56%, before falling to around 33% in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and then rising again to around 48% in 2023 (UNCTAD, 2025[66]). Depending on the sectors affected, FDI can have significantly different impacts for men and women in the local labour market, affecting equality and women’s economic empowerment. Foreign firms contribute positively to labour market outcomes by employing a greater share of women, offering higher salaries and providing better job security than domestic firms.
However, FDI tends to be more concentrated in sectors which employ fewer women. FDI in Egypt has been highly concentrated in oil extraction, accounting for 40% of total FDI flows during 2020-21 (Central Bank of Egypt, 2021[67]). Since 2021, increased shares of net FDI inflows have been directed towards the manufacturing and services sectors, which could generate significant job opportunities for women in the future. During 2022-23, 30% of FDI inflows went to “other services” and 27% to manufacturing, with oil extraction falling to 24%, and information technology and communications (ITC) receiving 7% and real estate services 5% (Chapter 9). Some of these sectors employ very few women as a share of total female employment. In particular, in 2023, less than 2% of women employees in Egypt were working in the oil extraction, ICT services and real estate sectors combined.
Recent reforms have lifted some of the restrictions preventing women from working in certain FDI-supported sectors. For example, Decree No. 43, issued in 2021, paved the way for greater inclusion of women in the industrial workforce by removing restrictions that once prevented them from working in nearly 30 sectors, such as glassmaking, leather production, and chemical manufacturing. This reform now enables qualified women to pursue opportunities in a wide range of manufacturing and processing fields, from textiles and electronics to food production and metalwork, promoting a more diverse and inclusive industrial landscape. Additionally, Decree No. 44, issued in 2021, permits women to work night shifts in industrial settings, a significant expansion from previous regulations. The decree also ensures safety measures for women, including secure transportation and adjustments for pregnant workers. These reforms reflect the government’s commitment to equality between men and women and in worker protection, offering women more employment opportunities in industrial sectors while maintaining important safeguards for their health and security. However, despite these efforts, women are still less likely than men to take advantage of the opportunities brought by foreign investors. The government has recently lifted restrictions on foreign investment in sectors where women are more concentrated, such as education services and healthcare, and included them in its target sectors for investment promotion, which suggests that they could attract more FDI in the coming years (Chapter 9).
In addition, foreign firms are less likely than Egyptian firms to have women among their top managers and owners, according to a 2020 World Bank Survey (World Bank, 2020[68]). Egypt has implemented programmes to qualify women for leadership, including the Women on Boards Observatory and Women in Leadership programme, to increase the representation of women on corporate boards (NCW, 2024[6]).
FDI is unevenly distributed geographically in Egypt, with foreign firms tending to locate their operations in urban areas, exacerbating existing inequalities. Women in rural areas – who generally live within more patriarchal familial and societal structures and tend to marry much younger (UN Women, 2018[69]) – are less likely than men to move from rural areas to urban centres, where better job opportunities are available. The lack of safe transport and difficulty in finding affordable accommodation appear to be important reasons behind this. Providing safe and affordable transport and accommodation services could therefore help women take advantage of opportunities available in Egypt's main economic centres, where foreign MNEs tend to locate.
Development co-operation is a key support for women’s economic empowerment, but could advance gender equality further
Egypt is a major focus for official development assistance (ODA),9 ranking third globally for bilateral ODA volume from all official providers in 2022 (OECD, 2025[70]). International development co-operation contributes to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by supporting inclusive and sustainable economic growth, poverty eradication and the improvement of living standards in partner countries (OECD, 2023[71]). In 2022-23, over USD 1 billion of bilateral allocable ODA committed by members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) to Egypt included gender equality objectives.10 This amount represented 44% of all ODA committed to Egypt in that period – the highest share of the decade. This indicates a growing recognition of the importance of gender equality in international development co-operation with Egypt (Chapter 10).
Women’s economic empowerment is an important objective for many development partners working in Egypt, and received USD 745 million in ODA in 2022-23. The largest bilateral supporters of women’s economic empowerment by volume were Japan, France, Germany, the United States and the EU institutions in 2022-23. Women’s economic empowerment activities financed by ODA in Egypt cover a range of themes.11 The most common is support to women-owned and women-managed businesses. This is both a recognition of the large role that MSMEs play in the Egyptian economy and of the obstacles that women face in accessing financing for their businesses. Urban management and urban safety, and rural development, are other common themes in development co-operation for women’s economic empowerment in Egypt.
Despite the priority given by ODA to women’s economic empowerment to Egypt, several ODA-funded activities in the economic and productive sectors could better integrate gender equality considerations. For example, infrastructure and energy programmes have the potential to support women’s economic empowerment through inclusive job creation and improved access to services. Including gender considerations in project design can help facilitate equal access to jobs and to the opportunities created by the investment (OECD, 2021[72]). Similarly, ODA-funded projects in the banking and business sector are not explicitly gender-focused, but have the potential to support women’s economic empowerment through increased access to finance, as they can be large volume projects which often consist of concessional loans to support SMEs.
Development co-operation activities can unintentionally exacerbate inequalities, so it is crucial that all programmes and projects assess their potential impact on women (OECD, 2022[73]). For example, gender-based violence can be maintained or even increased by development co-operation activities if not considered adequately in their design (OECD, 2022[74]). As violence against women is an obstacle for their empowerment in Egypt, several initiatives have been designed and implemented to address this (Chapter 3 and Chapter 7). It is crucial for all development co-operation programmes to include measures to prevent and respond to violence in order to dismantle this barrier and accelerate women’s economic empowerment.
Undertaking a gender analysis and using its findings to inform programme design and implementation are the first steps in gender-responsive interventions. Inclusive partnerships and participatory processes can also contribute to more effective co-operation and sustainable outcomes. While many efforts exist to co-ordinate and consult with a variety of stakeholders, it is crucial to further strengthen the conditions for civil society organisations to operate in Egypt. Partnering with local organisations, particularly local women’s rights organisations and movements, can produce compounding benefits and accelerate progress towards gender equality and women’s economic empowerment (Chapter 10).
This section summarises the main findings of the publication and outlines key recommendations to address the persistent barriers to women’s economic empowerment in Egypt. By presenting evidence-based and actionable measures, the recommendations aim to support policymakers, development partners, and civil society in advancing gender equality and unlocking women’s full economic potential.
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← 1. This review was produced through desk research, data collection and analysis, questionnaires, consultation missions and interviews with relevant stakeholders, including representatives from the government, private sector, civil society and international and regional organisations active in the country.
← 2. These data come from the OECD Social Institutions & Gender Index database, which is based on the UN and UNICEF’s data collections (United Nations, 2019[76]; UNICEF, 2024[77]).
← 3. The OECD describes the demographic dividend as the potential acceleration in economic growth arising from a shift in population age structure during the demographic transition, particularly when the working-age population (typically 15-64) grows faster than the dependent population (children under 15 and elderly over 64), lowering the age dependency ratio.
← 4. The incidence of low pay is defined as earnings that are two-thirds of the median wage or below.
← 5. Defined as family farm workers and enterprises under the supervision of a family member (usually a husband or a father).
← 6. The Takaful and Karam conditional and unconditional cash transfer programme is one of Egypt’s largest investments in human capital development and was launched in 2015 with the support of a USD 400 million World Bank programme. It is implemented by the Ministry of Social Solidarity. As of December 2023, the programme has reached 4.67 million households (around 17 million citizens) and 74% of card holders are women.
← 7. The Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) is the OECD Development Centre's composite measure of discrimination against women in social institutions across 179 countries, capturing laws, norms, and practices in areas like family, violence, resources, and civil liberties. See Box 3.1 in Chapter 3 for more information on the SIGI.
← 8. Additional initiatives have been rolled out to raise awareness of women’s inheritance rights, including national campaigns and partnerships with religious leaders, supported by the National Council for Women, to ensure women can claim their rightful share (NCW, 2023).
← 9. For a definition of ODA see https://www.oecd.org/en/topics/sub-issues/oda-eligibility-and-conditions/official-development-assistance--definition-and-coverage.html.
← 10. When DAC members report their ODA to the OECD, for each activity they indicate (mark) if gender equality is a principal objective, a significant objective or not an objective. Reporting on this gender policy marker is not mandatory for DAC participants, and Saudi Arabia and Kuwait currently do not report on the marker (OECD, 2024[75]).
← 11. Based on analysis of the 24 largest projects for women’s economic empowerment in Egypt over 2020-21.