HIC-HLRN joins its fraternal HIC Member organization, the Egyptian Association for Collective Rights (EOCR), in extending sincere congratulations on the announcement of the first general union for farmers and small farmers in Egypt in accordance with the provisions of Law 213 of 2017 on the issuance of trade union organizations and the protection of the right to organize (published in the Official Gazette No. 50 bis on December 17, 2017), and its amendments pursuant to Law 142 of 2019 (published in the Official Gazette No. 31 bis on August 5, 2019), which stipulates in its first article amending Article 12 of Law 213 of 2017 that to establish a general union for any profession, it must include no less than 15,000 members representing at least ten trade union committees. Since the General Union of Farmers and Small Farmers has met this condition, the Minister of Manpower issued a decision to announce the union on 20 February 2025. It is worth noting that the total number of female farmers The farmers, male and female workers in agriculture include approximately 18 million farmers in rural Egypt.

Despite the importance and merit of this step, which we welcome, we hope that these efforts will continue to implement the principle of the right to organize and build institutions for farmers, male and female workers in agriculture, considering that this is the gateway to improving the conditions of agricultural workers in particular and the general population of Egypt in general.

It is also noteworthy that the General Syndicate of Farmers and Small Farmers includes female members, both in the General Assembly and the Board of Directors.

Once again, we extend our sincere congratulations on the announcement of the first General Syndicate of Farmers and Small Farmers.

We hope to further emphasize the rights of farmers and agricultural workers in building their institutions, considering that this is one of the main gateways to developing and improving the living and economic conditions of all those who work in the agricultural sector and the general population in Egypt.

Image: Papyrus painting of harvest in ancient Egypt, ca. 1200 B.C.E. Egypt was one of the earliest civilizations to develop large-scale agriculture. Source: The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt.