Drastic and structural changes are not only taking place in Egypt, but also in the entire region. In response, the mainstream media has been flooded with headlines on wide scale conflict, while ignoring some of the more local issues.

            Research interns of the Center for Arab-West Understanding (CAWU) visited the Ezbet Al-Hagana community, a very poor area close to the affluent Medinet Nasr in Cairo. These interns wrote three articles discussing local micro-scale development, class relations, and constructive debate. These visits were made possible through the help of the Imarat-Al Insan foundation that has invited the interns to attend an iftar  [meal the daily fasting is broken with] in its youth development school.

Photo-Credit: Emarat al Insan Facebook Page here

            Mohamed Shawqi provides our readers with an overview of the Imaret Al-Insan foundation, mentioning various activities including local housing development, interest-free financial services, youth development and childcare. Read more here.

            Omar Ali presents our readers with an analysis of the widening social gap as well as the social and political marginalization of the lower classes. His article discusses the change in the psychology of the lower classes over the past three years and how they perceive their relation with the wider community and higher social classes. Read more here.

            Alastair White provides our readers with an analysis of the discussion that took place during our meeting with Imarat Al-Insan. He explains that despite political fragmentation and polarization, the capacity to hold a constructive and unbiased debate still exists among many Egyptians. Read more here.

            Together, these articles provide a glimpse of the reality in Egypt, away from the flashy headlines and gruesome stories in mainstream media. These three articles do not intended to muck up reality. Instead, we provide our readers with an unbiased description of the conditions in a local community in Egypt.   

Omar Ali,

Research intern with the Center for Arab-West Understanding