The state has launched many initiatives, including attention to the health of Egyptian women.
Egypt launches healthcare reforms to accelerate service provision - File photo
The Egyptian government has shown great interest in the healthcare sector, launching an urgent package of health services to bridge the gap and improve the quality of services. The state is focusing on two aspects of the health file for Egyptians.
Firstly, rehabilitating and developing the healthcare infrastructure to keep pace with the latest healthcare service performance by applying the new comprehensive health insurance system. Secondly, launching a package of healthcare reforms to speed up the provision of services to citizens, while adhering to globally adopted quality standards to achieve patient satisfaction.
The government has allocated EGP 270 billion from the general state budget for healthcare programs during the period of 2018/19 to 2020/21, with a growth rate of 70% compared to the previous three years.
The state has launched many initiatives, including attention to the health of Egyptian women, such as the initiative for women's health and fetal health, the initiative to discover and treat hearing impairment at the end of 2019, and the initiative for early detection of obesity, anemia and stunting in schools students in 2020. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the state has expanded the launch of health initiatives.
During the past eight years (2014-2022), the Egyptian state directed around EGP 572 billion from the general budget to government spending on the healthcare sector, with a growth rate of 285% compared to the eight years preceding it (2007-2014).
The annual government spending aimed at the sector has increased from EGP 31 billion in 2014 to EGP 109 billion in 2022, at a growth rate of 252%, according to a report by the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development.
In line with this, public investment directed to the health sector during the same period exceeded EGP 132 billion, with a growth rate of 450%. The annual public investment aimed at the sector has increased from EGP 3.7 billion in 2014 to EGP 54 billion in 2022, at a growth rate of over 1360%.
Egypt's efforts to improve the healthcare sector have been recognized and praised by international organizations such as the World Bank, which has provided funding for the Egyptian Health Insurance System.
This support will help the government to increase coverage and improve the quality of healthcare services. In addition, Egypt's healthcare sector has been ranked as the second-highest in Africa by the World Health Organization, demonstrating the country's commitment to the health and well-being of its citizens.
