Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Rome (Agenzia Fides) – The crisis situation that affected several states in North Africa did not have repercussions on the structure and personnel of the Project of Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) of the Italian Association, Amici di Raoul Follereau (AIFO) in Alexandria, Egypt. The Association reported this to Fides. The project was suspended for 10 days and then activities gradually began again. Now everything is back to normal. AIFO in Alexandria supports the work of local NGO Caritas Egypt that manages the SETI Centre (Support, Education, Training and Integration), attended by about 1,700 children with intellectual and mental disabilities. The centre operates in the areas of Karmuz, Smouha, Hadra, Mandara, Bacchus, Kabbari, Borg El Arab, Moutaza and Gomrok.
From data provided by the local authorities, the population of Egypt is around 75 million people. About 10 million live in the governorate of Alexandria. It is estimated that people with disabilities are 4% of the total, about 500,000 just in the capital. This large number of people suffer from the lack of services and live in a state of severe poverty. The socio-economic crisis that has recently affected the Middle East contributes to worsening the overall picture. AIFO has been present in Egypt since 1997 with the aim of improving the quality of life of people with disabilities through the promotion of the strategies of Community Based Rehabilitation. (AP) (25/2/2011 Agenzia Fides)
