Equal opportunities for meaningful employment should be accessible to all
Egypt has made significant strides towards equal rights for persons with disabilities. One key measure was the introduction of a 5% employment quota for persons with disabilities (Law 10 of 2018 on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities).
However, further barriers remain; such as social attitudes, digital access, and institutional structures that prevent equal access to information needed to succeed in the job market. This includes everything from recruitment processes and educational opportunities to regulations and paperwork. Additionally, fully inclusive support programs for career development and job transitions are often lacking. Employment rates for men with disabilities remain much lower than for men without (34% vs. 67%). For women with disabilities, the gap is even greater (7% vs. 19%).
In addition, global studies show that websites are becoming more complex and harder to navigate. Only 3% of the internet can be considered accessible to persons with disabilities. Little happens offline anymore, and the majority of meaningful employment and participation in society require some form of online access. Thus, for everyone to have equal opportunities, a more inclusive digital environment is urgently needed.
The Empowering Inclusion in Employment program helped to provide digital accessibility support to employment opportunities for persons with:
- hearing and auditory impairments
- visual impairments
- cognitive impairments (such as dyslexia, reading difficulties and attention deficiency)
- motor impairments
We recognize that there is no one-fits-all solution that could cater to everyone, keeping in mind that people have different experiences and varying levels of impairments that could affect how they interact with a given product or service. With this acknowledgement in mind, the program curated a comprehensive guide that addresses accessibility needs for the above disabilities, and provided support to solutions that catered to one or more types of disabilities.
With the commitment to leaving no one behind, and the emphasis that inclusion starts with accessibility, the Empowering Inclusion in Employment (EIIE) program helped to:
- Break down barriers to access that make employment information and opportunities hard to access
- Drive systemic change by fostering an inclusive mindset and directly supporting transformative solutions
- Create inclusive and accessible digital content, applications, and devices
- Raise awareness for the inclusion of persons with disabilities and challenge existing stereotypes
- Contribute to a positive shift in Egypt’s employment landscape in support of equal opportunities for persons with disabilities
- Create a collaborative, comprehensive handbook to serve as a reference point for the development of accessible digital solutions in Egypt
- Support the development of innovative evidence-based solutions to facilitate access to employment opportunities
- Enhance access to information, communication, education, employment, public services, and various crucial aspects of day-to-day life
In April 2025, the Digital Accessibility Handbook was soft-launched as a key outcome of the Empowering Inclusion in Employment (EIIE) program. It began with extensive desktop research by Berlin-based organization zero360, supported by input from the local teams of enpact and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), drawing on a wide array of international accessibility guidelines. This foundation was enriched through interviews with a diverse group of stakeholders, including designers, developers, NGOs, and individuals with disabilities in Egypt and beyond, each bringing valuable perspectives and expertise. The result is a practical, locally contextualized guide that supports developers, trainers, and organizations in designing accessible digital platforms for persons with visual, auditory, cognitive, and motor disabilities. The soft launch marked an important step toward building a more inclusive digital ecosystem in Egypt, where equal access to employment, services, and information is a shared responsibility.
Interested in learning more about the outcome of the program? Reach out to us at info@enpact.org. We’d love to connect.
Get in touch
Although the program has come to a close, if you are interested in learning more about the implementation and outcome of the project, please contact us at shc@enpact.org.
If you would like to learn more about enpact’s future projects, please use the form below.
