Egyptians living abroad contribute US$8.17 billion annually in remittances and are increasingly communicating to overseas missions their interest in supporting Egypt during the transition, said Ali al-Ashry, a high-level diplomat and assistant to the foreign minister.
Funds transferred from Egyptians living abroad comprise a crucial portion of Egypt’s national income.
Ashry, who works on issues pertaining to Egyptians abroad and overseas diplomatic missions, emphasized the importance of maintaining communication with diaspora communities and helping them to organize and establish groups and societies.
Ashry added that the Foreign Ministry is drafting a law to establish a commission for Egyptians abroad. The commission would provide legal protection for Egyptian expats by contracting with law firms and would be part of the Foreign Ministry’s consular sector.
The commission would be funded through a tax on all consular transactions within diplomatic missions abroad and would ideally be established after a new parliament that could pass the bill is formed.
Edited translation from MENA
