Egypt's president allocates LE600M to carrying out surgeries for patients on waiting lists

CAIRO – 4 August 2022: One week after instructing the government to expand the social safety network, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi held a meeting Thursday with senior officials to bolster healthcare services provided to low-income citizens as well as support to university students.

The president instructed developing a financial system that would improve the income of doctors and improve their working conditions, especially those with rare specializations and others operating in remote areas.

The president was briefed on the status of COVID-19 nationwide as well as that of the vaccination rate. Further, he learnt about the progress in implementing the various presidential initiatives in the healthcare sector, particularly those pertaining to the eradication of hepatitis C, supporting women health, and acceleration of performing surgeries on patients in critical conditions and are on waiting lists.

The number of patients on those lists, who have undergone surgeries within such initiative since 2018, is 1.2 million at a total cost of LE 11.6 billion. Those were carried out at 477 hospitals. On that front, the president instructed the allocation of LE 600 million to the initiative, and better raising the awareness of target citizens on how to benefit from the project.

The president also stressed the salience of continuing to offer free of charge screening for hepatitis C and treatment to patients. The chief of state similarly made the same assertion about women health, and screening them for breast cancer. That is why he was eager to follow up on the updates of renovating Dar El Salam Cancer Hospital, and the construction of the extension of the National Cancer Institute dubbed "500500."  

President Sisi was posted on the gradual introduction of the Universal Health Insurance System in governorates, and the timeline of completing the plan. In that context, the president urged guaranteeing the flow of financial resources to the system to ensure the adequacy of the service provided.

President Sisi equally stipulated refining the selection process of researchers at public research centers affiliated to the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. In addition, the president encouraged the minister to continue working towards the crystallization of a final vision on the "Technology of the Future 2050" initiative.

The initiative is about establishing technology universities offering degrees in artificial intelligence (AI), programming, financial inclusion, and digital media. The state treasury subsidizes the tuition fees of students at those universities, and offers scholarships to high-achieving ones. Another key aspect of the initiative is striking partnerships with international counterparts to ensure the students are getting a rich experience.