Poverty rates in Egypt jumped to 25.2 percent of the population during the period 2010-2011, up from 21.6 percent in 2008-2009, according to a report by the Central Agency for Public Mobility and Statistics.
The report, issued Tuesday, comes a day before the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on 17 October.
According to the report, the poverty rate stood at 51.4 percent in rural Upper Egypt during 2010-2011, up from 43.7 percent in 2008-2009. The rate increased in urban areas of Upper Egypt from 21.7 percent in 2008-2009 to 29.5 percent in 2010-2011.
The rate also increased in rural areas of Lower Egypt from 16.7 percent in 2008-2009 to 17 percent in 2010-2011. Another increase was detected at urban areas from 3.7 percent in 2008-2009 to 3.10 in 2010-2011, the report pointed.
The same report said Upper Egyptian governorates host the highest rates of poverty, with Assiut coming on top with 69 percent of its population, followed by Sohag with 59 percent, Aswan with 54 percent and Qena with 51 percent.
The Red Sea province recorded the lowest poverty rate at 2 percent, followed by Suez and Damietta by 3 percent and Port Said by 6 percent, the report added.
The poverty rate among holders of university degrees was reported at 6.5 percent, while those who were illiterate represented 36.4 percent of the poor.
