SOS Children in Egypt

Update: We are currently unable to take new sponsorships for our facilities in Egypt.

We are however able to take donations for the country. 

You may wish to consider sponsoring a child in another African country.

Political upheaval in the Arab Spring of 2011 has boosted optimism about Egypt’s future. However, numerous problems remain unresolved, including high unemployment, social exclusion, and poverty.

You can help orphaned and abandoned children in Egypt by giving a monthly donation to our work:

Give monthly to Egypt

Corruption and high unemployment cripple a proud nation

In spite of economic growth, persistent inequality means that hundreds of thousands of Egyptians have not reaped the benefits. Like illiteracy and infant mortality, the poverty rate continues to rise along with population growth. Little as improved since the Spring Revolution, with many still at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder.

Children in Egypt

• Well over a third of Egypt’s population is under 14 years old. Despite recent progress, nearly half of all children live on less than $2 a day. Around 13% of infants are born underweight and impoverished children often lack access to schooling and health facilities.
• Egypt is home to 1.7 million orphaned children. Many of them are exploited for labour, often involving long shifts and dangerous environments. Children harvesting cotton may have to work for 11 hours a day in temperatures of 40 degrees celsius.
• 1 million children live on the streets, resorting to begging and petty theft for survival. Many experience frequent abuse by adults, often sexual. This figure continues to rise.
• Huge numbers of girls suffer as a result of the ancient tradition of female genital mutilation. Although attitudes are slowly changing, round 90% of women in Egypt have been subject to this practice.

Our Work in Egypt

Cairo

We began working in Egypt in 1977, building our first SOS Children's Village in Cairo, established on a hilly site in the residential area of Heliopolis, on the north-eastern edge of the city. The Village has 33 family houses and there is also a large SOS Nursery, which is open to children from the local community as well as from the children's village. Alongside the Village are two SOS Youth Homes, where adolescents live whilst undertaking vocational training or further education, under the guidance of a youth leader who helps them on the first steps to independence.

Alexandria

Tanta

Local Contact