Although the prevalence of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) in Egypt among married women aged 15–49 years is high (92 percent), in the most recent (2014) Demographic and Health Survey, prevalence rates appear to be declining among younger cohorts of girls and women. Support for the discontinuation of the practice is more widespread in younger generations, among females, and among those living in urban areas. Variations in attitudes toward FGM/C by education level and wealth status are also documented. While numerous studies have examined the reasons why people practice FGM/C, few studies have examined the characteristics of the individuals who have abandoned the practice. In this study, we sought to examine the characteristics of abandoners and explore the geographic patterns of FGM/C abandonment; explore benefits gained and challenges faced by abandoners within their families/communities; and understand how families and individuals overcome social sanctions and mitigate against the risk of relapse.
In the current global environment, it is alleged that theoretical knowledge is not sufficient for the accomplishment of an individual in the workplace. The idea of someone 'going soft' does not have absurdly definite connotations for adult learners, but when it comes to children; softness is a pivotal pattern of their learning and development. Children need to be indoctrinated to address the "traps" of life, have critical thinking, control their feelings and their relationships with others, and be able to voice their ideas and defend their position with arguments. To the advantage of the knowledge gained of the need to develop “soft” skills from a young age, it is indispensable that Moroccan preschools introduce a module on the most important soft skills that children can form. A systematic literature review is conducted to provide an extensive overview of empirical studies measuring the importance of 21st century skills. The article discusses the current situation of Moroccan early childhood education and the opportunities for the development of soft skills from preschool age. The main results of this literature review highlight the importance of efforts to promote soft skills in the arena of early childhood education in Morocco.
The issue of violence against children has received a lot of attention in all regions of the world, as children are exposed to excessive violence in almost every aspect of their lives. Many efforts have been made and still are being made to confront this serious problem. It is noticeable through some observations, some statistics, and the results of some research studies that the rates of violence directed at a child with a disability are higher than the rates of violence directed at a non-disabled child. Perhaps this may be due to several reasons, which will be explained in the current work paper.The working paper aimed to shed some light on the problem of child violence directed at the child with a disability, in terms of: definition, types, statistics, and factors leading ... The working paper also aimed to clarify the role of the social work profession in facing or confronting this problem. Perhaps clarifying this provides social workers who are working in the field of disability a guide to help them know the professional roles required of them and to perform or exercise these roles. At the end of the working paper, a number of proposals and recommendations were presented that could be used in improving the process of effective confrontation of the problem of violence against children in general and violence against children with disabilities in particular.
The issue of violence against children has received a lot of attention in all regions of the world as children are exposed to excessive violence in almost every aspect of their lives. Many efforts have been made and still are being made to confront this serious problem. It is noticeable through some observations, some statistics, and the results of some research studies that the rates of violence directed at a child with a disability are higher than the rates of violence directed at a non-disabled child. Perhaps this may be due to several reasons which will be explained in the current paper. This paper aims to shed some light on the problem of child violence directed at the child with a disability, in terms of definition, types, statistics, and factors leading. The paper also aims to clarify the role of the social work profession in facing or confronting this problem. Perhaps clarifying this provides social workers who are working in the field of disability a guide to help them know the professional roles required of them and to perform or exercise these roles. At the end of the working paper, a number of proposals and recommendations were presented that could be used in improving the process of effective confrontation of the problem of violence against children in general and violence against children with disabilities in particular.
BACKGROUND: Compassion is central to neonatal end-of-life care, ensuring comfort and dignity for neonates with life-limiting conditions and their families. However, the emotional and ethical challenges faced by neonatal palliative care nurses, particularly in culturally diverse settings, remain underexplored, limiting the development of effective support mechanisms. AIM: This study aims to explore the lived experiences of neonatal palliative care nurses in Egypt, focusing on how they cultivate and sustain compassion in end-of-life care. It examines the role of compassion in shaping caregiving practices, ethical decision-making, and coping with emotional distress. Additionally, it investigates the cultural and institutional facilitators and barriers that influence compassionate care delivery, generating evidence-based recommendations for nursing education, practice, and policy. METHODS: A qualitative phenomenological study guided by Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was conducted. Forty nurses from four neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in Egypt completed semi-structured interviews and reflective journaling. Data were analyzed using a two-phase approach, incorporating Lazarus and Folkman's Transactional Model of Stress and Coping to contextualize findings within broader emotional regulation and resilience frameworks. RESULTS: Analysis yielded seven themes. Nurses reported developing deep emotional bonds with neonates and families, which enhanced care quality but also intensified personal grief and ethical dilemmas. Compassion emerged as a key mechanism for facilitating empathetic communication and holistic care, yet sustaining it was hindered by compassion fatigue, high workloads, insufficient training, and cultural expectations complicating end-of-life decision-making. CONCLUSION: Compassion is crucial in mitigating neonatal palliative care nurses' emotional and ethical burdens. To sustain compassionate care, robust institutional support, culturally responsive training, and interdisciplinary collaboration are essential. These findings inform nursing education, policy, and practice, emphasizing strategies to enhance nurse well-being and improve care quality in diverse healthcare settings. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Strengthening institutional policies, integrating resilience training, and developing culturally sensitive communication strategies are critical to ensuring sustainable, compassionate care in neonatal palliative settings.
BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and related isolation measures have substantial adverse economic, social, and psychological consequences and expose children to increased risk of violence. The present study aimed to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on violence against children in Egypt. METHODS: An online survey, in Arabic, was disseminated during the period from 9 to 13 April 2020, to parents of children who were up to 18 years old residing in Egypt, selected using a snowball sampling technique, during the period from 25 March to 8 April during the implementation of the nationwide compulsory isolation measures against COVID-19 (25 March to 8 April 2020). The survey covered three areas: socio-demographic data, psychological impact measured using the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and violence against children during the past 2 weeks measured using a modified parent-report of a child abuse screening tool (ICAST-P) developed by the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect. RESULTS: Out of 1118 completed survey responses, 90.5% of children were subjected to violent discipline, 88.7% experienced psychological aggression, and 43.2% encountered severe physical punishment. Approximately 60% of respondents reported a moderate-to-severe psychological impact (IES-R scores ≥ 33), which was associated with a higher rate of violent discipline (OR: 9.3; 95% CI: 5.37-16.027; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study in Egypt to provide evidence on the association of COVID-19 pandemic, its psychological impact, and increased rates of violence against children. Effective multilevel strategies are urgently required to protect children from violence and its catastrophic consequences during the continually evolving COVID-19 pandemic.
Seham Abokresha, Elsayed Abdelkreem, Rasha Abd Elhameed Ali
Egypt’s 2021 Family Health Survey indicated that nearly 18% of women aged 20–24 years had married or were engaged before turning 18. This brief explores the perspectives of adolescent girls, their families, and key stakeholders on the role of men in the decision-making process pertaining to child marriage. The study took place in Assiut and Sohag in Upper Egypt selected on the basis of the high prevalence of child marriage. Results confirm that, in line with the patriarchal norms that underlie most marriage decisions in rural Upper Egypt, fathers/male guardians are the primary decision-makers regarding when a girl gets married and to whom. Poverty and fear about the girl’s reputation push fathers to marry off their underage daughters while misconceptions about masculinity along with inequitable gender norms drive men to seek child brides to ensure their subordination. Lack of financial, cognitive, and social capital undermine girls’ negotiating power and push them to accept marriage at an early age. In some instances girls can mobilize support from other family members and stop an early or unwanted marriage from happening. Recommendations are suggested to curb child marriage in rural Upper Egypt.
Salma Abou Hussein, Reham Abou El-Fadl, Sally Radwan et al.
BACKGROUND: The initial years of life, particularly the first two years, are considered the most important for brain development and timely interventions profoundly affect the health of the child and families. AIMS: This study aimed to determine the effect of maternal health education on motor, social and cognitive development in infants less than two years old, and to identify the factors that could affect normal development. METHODS: Two hundred and ten mothers and their infants (109 interventions, 101 controls) were recruited from maternal and child health centres in Assiut Governorate, Egypt, in 2017. The maternal training programme has been taught to mothers of infants in intervention groups twice per month and up to five months' duration; however, routine services are provided to control groups only. Bivariate and multivariable analyses were performed to identify the most important predictors of normal development. RESULTS: There were significant improvements in early childhood developmental domains for the intervention groups after five months comparable to the base line assessment. Percent of normal development among intervention groups in communication subscale increased from 46.8% to 76% to 97.9% compared to 50.5% to 46.8% to 57.4% in the control groups (baseline, after two month and after five months assessment respectively). The intervention was a significant predictor in normal development. CONCLUSIONS: There was an improvement in early childhood developmental domains for the intervention groups after applying maternal training programme. Designing educational interventions for routine health care services that reach all children will provide mothers with the opportunity for improvement in early childhood developmental.
Heba M. Mohammed, Omaima El Gibaly, Eman M. M. Monazea et al.
Back ground: Child malnutrition is a major public health problem in low income and middleincome countries especially among marginalized populations. Stunting contributes to 14.5%of annual deaths and 12.6% of disability adjusted life years (DALYS) in under-5 yearschildren. Objective: To identify factors contributing to stunting among a sample of children.Methods: A case control study was conducted at the National Nutrition Institute, Egypt. Thestudy recruited 300 children aged 2-8 years, 148 stunted children as cases and 152 nonstuntedas control. Anthropometric measurements were assessed, socio economic status wasevaluated, dietary assessment was done using 24 hours recall and food frequencyquestionnaire, previous feeding practices, and morbidities in the last two weeks wereassessed. Results: Four logistic regression models were developed to predict stunting basedon the framework developed by the WHO. Mothers’ education was the only socioeconomicpredictor of stunting where low maternal education attainment was associated with stunting.Formula feeding during first six moth of life was associated with reduced stunting. Childrenwith history of delayed milestones were 2.4 times more likely to be stunted (p=0.002) whilechildren with history of rickets were four times more likely to be stunted (p=0.007). Bothanemia and chest infection increased the risk of being stunting by two folds. Dietarypredictors included milk, meat and calcium consumption where meeting milk and meatgroups recommendation reduced risk of being stunted by 80% and 40% while reducedcalcium intake by 1 mg increase risk of being stunting by 1%. Conclusion: maternaleducation, previous formula feeding, previous morbidities and decrease intake of milk andmeat groups are significant predictors for stunting.
Neurocognitive functions play a fundamental role in children's learning and academic success. Among these functions, memorization-based on associative cognitive processes-is essential for knowledge acquisition. In Morocco, educational disparities between rural and urban environments and differences between public and private schools may influence cognitive development and learning outcomes among schoolchildren. This study aimed to analyze the memorization process among Moroccan school-aged children and to identify demographic and contextual factors associated with learning performance. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 441 children aged 8-15 years recruited from six public and private schools in the Marrakech-Safi region of Morocco between November 2022 and March 2023. Memorization and learning abilities were assessed using the adapted Moroccan version of the Rey-Taylor auditory-verbal learning test (AVLT). Key indicators included the total number of recalled words across 10 trials, the learning index, and retroactive interference. Associations between cognitive performance and contextual variables (age, gender, school type, and residence) were analyzed using Spearman correlation tests. The results show that the learning index is relatively higher among girls (M = 4.8, standard deviation [SD] = 2.70), children over 12 years old (M = 5.0, SD = 2.39), children from rural areas (M = 5.0, SD = 2.62), and those enrolled in the public sector (M = 5.0, SD = 2.59), compared with other categories. These variables were the least affected by retroactive interference except for the rural environment, which experienced an RI = 68.8, SD = 0.21. However, the data indicate a performance among private-sector and younger students in at least one learning assessment stage. The Spearman test showed a positive correlation between the learning index and the age variable (r = 0.095; p = 0.046), and between retroactive interference and the living environment (r = 0.105; p = 0.028) and the type of school (r = 0.126; p = 0.0008). Overall, improving memory and academic performance requires targeted pedagogy, extracurricular activities, equal school opportunities, and research on factors, such as motivation, social dynamics, and teaching methods. Similarly, longitudinal studies will help deepen the understanding of memory and guide educational policies.
Soukaina Loulidi, Youssef El Bahi, Ismail Chaaouf et al.
