Cairo, April 29 (IANS) Egypt’s presidential candidate Amr Moussa has vowed to fight unemployment and poverty during his presidential campaign in southern Egypt, Xinhua reports.
Moussa, who is to end his tenure in May as chief of Cairo-based Arab League, said Thursday that his programme will include an immediate and logical solution to the unemployment problem in the country.
Moussa during a press conference held in Qena governorate said that the government should provide an allowance for the unemployed for one year with an average of 1,500 Egyptian pounds (about $252 ).
Egypt’s unemployment rate is estimated at around 20 percent, although official figures showed it was about nine percent.
Moussa said poverty was another main problem and should be reduced by economic reforms and social justice. Efforts should be made to establish small businesses, projects and provide credit and direct loans like India and Brazil, he added.
He is one of presidential candidates for the upcoming election later this year, after President Hosni Mubarak was forced to resign Feb. 11 due to anti-government protests against his nearly 30- year rule.
Moussa was Egypt’s foreign minister from 1991 to 2001. He has been the Arab League’s secretary general since 2001.
