Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights held on Saturday, May 12, 2012 in cooperation with the Association of Women for Development at Badrasheen Center, in Giza Governorate, the fourth panel discussion about gaining the issue of decentralization. It aimed to raise awareness of decentralization and the social and political variables, as well as monitoring and discuss the problems of citizens associated with services and the role of local authorities for fighting and facing them.
Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human rights continued the implementation of seminars for citizens, which aims to raise awareness of decentralization and its social and political variables, as well as monitoring and discussing the problems associated with the citizens to public services and the role of local authorities in its face.
Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights introduced on Wednesday, May 2, 2012 the 11th issue of citizen's voice e-magazine. It dealt with a number of press release issues that highlight the range of problems and issues concerning the local citizens.
Egypt is undergoing through a democratic transition which will be a determinant in contemporary history. We cannot talk about integrated democracy without talking about the system of a new local administration supporting decentralization and transfer more powers to local units and accommodate full popular participation in local decision-making and real control of community on performance of the executive state .
Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights produced the Tenth Issue of the citizen's voice magazine. This magazine comes in the framework of Citizen Project of decentralization. This project is implemented by the support of the Foundation for the Future in the five governorates of Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Qena and Luxor. The project seeks to build the capacity of local community parties to deal with changes associated with decentralization leading to improve the quality of public services provided to citizens and to activate the work of popular control of local bodies.
In the first field activities of the citizen's voice project (2), Maat Foundation for Peace , Development and Human Rights held training workshop under the title "Activating the role of mass media to support decentralization" with the participation of 22 journalists and television and radio journalists programs, during the period from 2 to April 3, 2012.
Yesterday, Wednesday March 28, 2012, a workshop launched on "Towards a legal and constitutional framework supportive to decentralization in Egypt," implemented by Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights in cooperation with the Hanns Seidel German Foundation.
Under ambiguous climate and political confounded performance, Egyptian people woke up on the scandal of a judicial decision issuance - surrounded by uncertainty – which stipulated to cancel travel ban on foreign nationals accused in the so-called foreign funding case and who have actually left the Egyptian territories, a few hours after the issuance of the decision. This left a heavy gloomy atmosphere- which influenced the independence of the Egyptian political decision on one hand and the independence of the Egyptian judicial House on the other hand.
System of good governance in Egypt would not be completed unless the democratization reach the level of local administration in Egypt to be eligible for the positive shift towards more decentralization and empowerment of administrative and financial support to local government units to become more responsive to citizens' rights.
In the framework of Maat's interest of poor and marginalized groups in the Egyptian society and for the complete process of its former programs in this field, Maat's Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights launched a new developmental project entitled" Integrated Protection for the Families of Prisoners and Detainees -Integration and Rehabilitation", which will last for three years starting from first of March till the end of February 2015.
Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights Concluded training workshop in the city of Benha - Qaliubiya under the project "Protect Your Voice from Invalidating 2" with the support of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems "IFES" which aims to increase voter turnout in the elections of the Shura Council and reduce the proportion of invalid votes in this election.
In the context of the interest of Maat's Foundation for Peace Development and Human Rights in monitoring the conditions of the Egyptian citizen after a year of Revolution of January, 2011, it issued today, corresponding to Sunday, January 29, 2012, a special issue of its electronic magazine" Voice of the Citizen ".
Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights concluded its training workshops of the popular committees that will make follow up for the elections held on 28 and 29 in the first phases that will include nine governorates. Maat will make follow up in the governorates of Cairo, Luxor and Alexandria. This follow up is included among the popular control over the elections adopted and executed by Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights in the half renewal of Shura Council in 2010 and also former people's council.
Maat for Peace, Development and Human Rights held a youth training workshop at Hehia City in Sharqia on "Tools and Skills for voters awareness. This comes within the framework of the project "Protecting your Vote of Invalidity" executed by the Foundation with the support of International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). The training depends on preparing youth cadres for the election awareness in the rural areas that suffer from shortage of electoral awareness because it is far from the capital.
Within the framework of Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights to support the process of political participation and work on the integrity of elections and its correctness, the foundation demanded from the military council to issue a to make the sorting in the sub-committees instead of the general committees. This comes within the framework of popular control adopted by the Foundation, which aims to convert the voter to the observer and to make assessment for the electoral process.
The activation of the fourth training course in the province of Qaliubiya city has begun today on "Strengthening the capacity for the development of the political youth participation, carried out by Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights in cooperation with the Foundation for the Dignity of Development and Human Rights with the support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation German at the local association of journalists and reporters .
Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights concluded the training workshops of the popular committees that will follow up the elections of November 28, and 29 in the first phase. These workshops include nine (9) governorates. Maat will follow up this phase in Egypt, Luxor and Alexandria. This follow up comes within the popular control program on elections executed by Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights in the semi renewals of Shura Council in 2010 and also former People's council elections.
Today, the network of election in the Arab world has started its follow-up of Egyptian elections from 8:00am in the three governorates of Cairo and Alexandria and Fayoum. It is worth mentioning that the network of elections in the Arab world has got 67 licenses and permits of the Supreme Commission for Egyptian Elections to follow up the electoral process. The network is making the follow-up process of self-funding. The network has previously observed elections in several countries, including Tunisia, Jordan, Morocco, Sudan, Iraq and Yemen.
Within the framework of Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights of the importance of political awareness and motivation for political participation and the belief of the organization with the role of young people, especially media and officials of youth centers, and despite Egypt is experiencing unfortunate events , but we see that continuing to aware young people and motivate them to participate and also to insist on conducting election on time are the true guarantee for the democratic transformation.
With these words, Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights concluded training course on "tools and skills of the Egyptian voter awareness," which was held over four days in Menoufia Governorate.
This comes in the framework of "Keeping your voice from invalidating" that is being implemented with support from the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, "IFes" where the four targeted courses the (115) participants from youth and natural leaders of the four different centers in Menofia (Talla – Berket El-Sabaa- Al-Shohdaa - Ashmun ).
