CAIRO: Egypt’s jobless rate rose to 12.7 percent in 2012 from 12 percent in 2011 and nine percent in 2010, due to the economic crisis that followed the toppling of Hosni Mubarak, official figures showed yesterday.
The number of unemployed reached 3.4 million at the end of last year, said the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics. The number of people in employment reached 23.6 million out of a population of 84 million.
“The increase in the numbers of jobless people is due to the slowdown of economic growth in Egypt and in view of unstable political conditions in the wake of the January 25 revolution,” the agency said. The figures do not take into account those employed in the informal sector. President Mohammed Mursi’s government has been negotiating a $4.8bn loan from the International Monetary Fund, but the loan is subject to unpopular economic reforms that could lead to further price hikes. AFP
