CAPMAS: Female life expectancy increases to 72.9 years old

Female life expectancy in Egypt increased from 70.5 years old in 2009 to 72.9 in 2015, according to figures released by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) on Saturday to mark the occasion of the International Day of Action for Women's Health.

According to CAPMAS, female mortality rates have fluctuated in recent years, increasing from 5.6 deaths per 1000 women in 2008, to 5.8 in 2012, and then back 5.6 in 2014.

Mortality rate among mothers also decreased from 84 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2000 to only 52 in 2013 and 2014.

Circulatory system diseases are the main cause of death among women, CAPMAS revealed, which resulted in 50.2 percent of female deaths in 2014. The second highest cause of death among females is gastroenterological diseases, followed by illnesses affecting the respiratory system.

Pregnancy and labor only contributed to 0.2 percent of female deaths in the period between 2010 and 2014 in Egypt.

CAPMAS also stated that 82 percent of women “participate in making decisions about their own healthcare,” 15 percent of whom make decisions on their own, while 68 percent make decisions with their spouse.

Sixty eight percent of women with sexually transmitted diseases have sought medical help, the study said. 

These statistics come after the administrative prosecution ordered the results of investigations it conducted on Egypt's deteriorating healthcare system, including the current shortage in medication and medical supplies, to be referred to the Cabinet on Saturday.

The investigation took place in light of media reports on one citizen's complaint of medical negligence in the treatment of his four-year-old daughter, after she was in an accident that put her in a coma last December in Cairo's Shubra al-Kheima district. The father had reportedly taken his daughter to four different hospitals that refused to admit her since they had no empty beds in the Intensive Care Unit.

The administrative prosecution's investigations revealed general negligence in the healthcare system, saying it cannot keep up with Egypt’s growing population, especially when dealing with emergency cases.

“The system cannot be fixed overnight, but it needs a complete overhaul to fulfill citizens’ constitutional right to receive treatment,” the prosecution’s statement read.