Child Rights in Egypt

Egypt, which ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990, has taken positive steps in addressing child rights issues over the years, including banning female genital mutilation and raising the minimum marriage age for girls to 18. However, serious challenges still remain.

An estimated 1.8 million children are working in Egypt, with 1.6 million believed to be engaged in hazardous work or unlawful forms of work. Poverty is a key driver of child labour: prior to the pandemic 28% of Egyptians were living in poverty and 7% of children were out of school. A further 34% of girls over 15 were struggling to read and write. 

The Centre sees a need for more efforts and measures to eliminate the worst forms of child labour and is currently working with clients on child labour prevention and remediation.