El-Sisi's directives came during a meeting on Wednesday with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Deputy Prime Minister for Human Development and Minister of Health and Population Khaled Abdel Ghaffar.
According to the Egyptian Presidential Spokesperson Mohamed El-Shennawy, El-Sisi also instructed the government to improve healthcare professionals' working conditions, enhance their participation in modern training programs, and leverage AI applications in healthcare.
Health insurance system
El-Shennawy noted that Madbouly and Abdel Ghaffar briefed the president on the government's plan for implementing the second phase of the Universal Health Insurance System (UHIS).
Phase two will cover the governorates of Damietta, Kafr El-Sheikh, Minya, Matrouh, and North Sinai. It includes developing 11 hospitals and constructing 19 new ones. This brings the total number of hospitals in the designated governorates to 65, with a total capacity of 10,517 beds. The second phase also includes establishing 534 primary healthcare units and centres, including medical and non-medical equipment, at an estimated cost of EGP 115 billion. These additional units and centres bring the total number of healthcare units and centres in the designated governorates to 669.
According to the spokesperson, the president, in turn, directed the government to expedite the completion of the second phase. He also stressed the importance of adhering to implementation timelines and meeting the highest quality standards.
Digital health system
Moreover, El-Shennawy stated that the Minister of Health reviewed steps towards developing a comprehensive digital health system that aligns with Egypt's 2030 Vision. The system aims to improve healthcare quality, facilitate service access, and increase operational efficiency.
These steps also include creating electronic health records, applying AI technologies, establishing a national health information exchange platform, and enhancing international partnerships to ensure the sustainability of the digital transformation.
In this context, the president directed the government to explore incorporating AI as a mandatory subject in school curricula.
Presidential initiatives
According to the spokesperson, El-Sisi listened to a presentation about presidential initiatives to improve public health for multiple age groups. These initiatives include examining individuals between birth and five, five and 15, and 18 and 65 through 15 presidential initiatives that provide 234 million health services at 3,527 health units.
In addition, El-Shennawy indicated that the president was briefed on the implementation status of the national health projects across the country. These projects include developing and constructing 20 hospitals in 11 governorates, at an estimated cost of EGP 11.7 billion, during the 2025 fiscal year.
The 20 hospitals add about 2,649 beds, including 458 ICU beds. They also add 442 incubators, 1,749 inpatient beds, 542 dialysis machines, and 95 operating rooms.
Eleven hospitals have been completed in ten governorates. The Ministry of Health has also equipped existing hospitals under its administration with all necessary medical equipment up to the third quarter of the 2024-2025 fiscal year.
Furthermore, the spokesperson noted that El-Sisi was updated on the Waiting List Initiative. Since its launch in July 2018, around EGP 24.746 billion has been spent to treat approximately 2.69 million citizens through the initiative. At least 2.1 million citizens were treated at state expense in 2025, and the cost of their treatment is estimated at EGP 23.2 billion.
Moreover, El-Shennawy added that the president was briefed on the government's efforts to localise pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturing. In this respect, El-Sisi emphasised providing all the necessary facilities to attract investments in this vital sector, which would meet local market demand and increase Egyptian exports.
Human development
According to the spokesperson, the president also reviewed the steps the Human Development Ministerial Group has taken to implement the national human development project "Bedaya." These steps include increasing nurseries for children under six and establishing 300 integrated human development centres in different governorates.
Similarly, Minister of Health Khaled Abdel Ghaffar presented an overview of the National Population and Development Strategy. The strategy is part of the presidential initiative "Bedaya," which aims to improve demographic characteristics and reduce stunting, obesity, and anaemia rates among children.
Abdel Ghaffar also provided an update on the population growth file. He noted that the annual population growth rate decreased by 1.34 percent in 2025, compared to 1.4 percent in 2024.
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