The unemployment rate in Egypt during the last quarter of 2012 rose to 13 percent from 12.5 percent during the third quarter compared to 9.8 percent during the same quarter in 2010, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics.
In a statement, the agency attributed the increase to the slowdown of economic activities in general during that period, and pointing out that 78 percent of those who are unemployed have high school or university degrees.
The statistics showed that the size of the labor force during the fourth quarter of last year was about 27 million people, an increase of about 18,000 people or 0.4 percent from the previous quarter and an increase of about 833,000 people, or 3.1 percent from the fourth quarter 2010.
According to the report, the number of people employed dropped by 44,000 to 23.5 million, or 0.2 percent, from the third quarter of 2012, while dropping by 356,000 or 1.5 percent from the same period in 2010. Similarly, the number of unemployed rose to 3.5 million, increasing by 4.8 percent or 162,000 from the third quarter of 2012 and increasing by 2.1 million from the fourth quarter of 2010.
Egypt's economy has staggered through the last two years since former President Hosni Mubarak's downfall, as continued political instability has spooked investors and hindered economic recovery.
