Government Implementation of the Standard Rules
As Seen By Member Organizations of
World Federation of the Deaf - WFD

Egypt

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© Dimitris Michailakis 1997

Association of the Deaf, Egypt
Compare with the following Country Report(s): the Egyptian Government

General policy

The officially recognized disability policy is expressed in law, and in guidelines adopted by the government. The emphasis in this policy is on rehabilitation, individual support, prevention, anti-discrimination law and accessibility measures.

Since the adoption of the Rules, the government has conveyed the message of full participation through mass media campaigns.

Legislation

The rights of persons with disabilities are protected by special legislation. According to the Government, the rights of persons with disabilities are protected both by general and special legislation. There is no judicial mechanism to protect the rights of persons with disabilities. There is, however, a governmental body (administrative) for that purpose. According to the Government, the only mechanisms that exist for protecting the rights of persons with disabilities is due process (legal remedy through the courts).

General legislation applies to persons with different disabilities with respect to education, employment, access to court of law and property rights. According to the Government general legislation applies to persons with disabilities with respect to education, employment and the right to marriage. The following benefits are guaranteed by law to persons with disabilities: health and medical care, training, rehabilitation and counselling and employment. According to the Government, even the benefit of independent living is guaranteed by law to persons with disabilities.

No new legislation concerning disability has been enacted, since the adoption of the Rules.

Accessibility

There are no rules to ensure accessibility of the built environment. According to the Government, there are laws and regulations to ensure accessibility of the built environment. There are no special transport arrangements for persons with disabilities. According to the Government, there is special transport available for medical treatment, education, work and for recreational purpose. The most difficult obstacles, when planning to built accessible environments, are lack of legislation and regulation, lack of planning and design capacity, lack of knowledge, research and information and lack of user participation. There is no disability awareness component incorporated in the training of planners, architects and construction engineers.

Sign language is used as the first language in education of deaf people. According to the Government, sign language for deaf people is recognized as the official language of deaf people. There are government measures to encourage media and other forms of public information to make their services accessible to persons with disabilities. The following services are provided in order to facilitate information and communication between persons with disabilities and others: literature in Braille/tape and news magazines on tape/Braille.

Organizations of persons with disabilities

There is a national umbrella organization. According to the Government, there is no national umbrella organization in which all the organizations of persons with disabilities are represented. There are no legal provisions mandating the representatives of persons with disabilities to participate in policy making or to work with governmental institutions. Organizations of persons with disabilities are never consulted, when laws and regulations with a disability aspect are being prepared. According to the Government, organizations are sometimes consulted. The government gives organizational/logistic support to organizations of persons with disabilities. The Government states giving financial support to organizations of disabled people. Persons with disabilities participate to a very limited extent in government, legislatures, judicial authorities, political parties and to some extent in NGOs. The role of organizations of persons with disabilities is to identify needs and priorities and to provide services.

Co-ordination of work

The co-ordinating committee is reporting to the Ministry of Social Affairs. It includes representatives of several Ministries and of other NGOs. The government expects the committee to participate in policy development. It is too early for an assessment concerning the effects of the establishment of the co-ordinating committee. According to the Government, the establishment of the co-ordinating committee has had the following effects: improved co-ordination of measures/programmes in the disability field, improved legislation, improved integration of responsibility, a better dialogue in the disability field, more accurate planning, more effective use of resources and improved promotion of public awareness.

The adoption of the Rules has not led to a rethinking of the approach to disability policy. According to the Government, the adoption of the Rules has led to such a rethinking.

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Contents of the WFD Report | Compare with the following Country Report(s): the Egyptian Government