“Bab Amal” for Ultra Poor Graduation

Bab Amal Program is one of Sawiris Foundation foe Social Development (SFSD) priority and fast growing programs since 2018. It is an evidence-based program that adopts the Graduation Approach “Targeting the Ultra Poor -TUP” developed by BRAC Foundation, the leading NGO in poverty alleviation. In 2018 SFSD joined forced with BRAC as technical assistance partner, and J-PAL as impact evaluation partner to contextualize the program in Egypt in close collaboration with two implementing NGOs in Upper Egypt: Giving without Limit NGO in Assiut governorate, and Egyptian Association for Human Development, in Sohag.

The program includes a comprehensive, time-bound, and sequenced set of interventions that aim to graduate people from ultra-poverty into sustainable livelihoods and stands on 4 pillars of intervention crosscut with coaching: livelihoods, social safety nets, financial inclusion, and social integration. The logic behind blending these elements is

1. Address immediate needs of participants using cash stipends
2. Provide asset transfers, as well as technical skills training to guarantee sustainable income.
3. Provide long-term investments in life skills to ensure positive behavior change.
4. Support savings and financial planning to raise participants ability for resilience.
5. Close supervision of the participants by bi-weekly home visit and coaching allow households in ultra-poverty to uplift themselves by developing sustainable livelihoods and socioeconomic resilience.

The program has been through many phases as below:

Phase 1: Bab Amal 1 has had a successful positive impact on The lives of 2,248 families participating in the program, of which - despite the challenges posed by the pandemic - 83% of the total number of families participating in the program (1,882 families) met the program criteria.

Phase 2: Building on the success of the first phase, Bab Amal is expanding in Suhag and Asyut targeting 4000 beneficiaries from the ultra-poor with potential expansion in El Menya Governorate. The second phase started in December 2022 and will close in June 2025.

Phase 3: Currently, SFSD is working on the development of Phase 3 which will aim to increase the impact of the two partner organizations who will transfer the knowledge and experience to local grassroots organizations amin to reach 4800 beneficiaries by the end of 2026.