Egyptian NGO Law 84 (2002) establishes two main types of NGOs (

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

s): ''Community Development Associations'' and ''Civic Foundations''.

Community Development Associations (CDAs)

Requirements

The Founders of CDAs may be either physical or

juridical person A juridical person is a non-human legal person that is not a single natural person but an organization recognized by law as a fictitious person such as a corporation, government agency, NGO or International (inter-governmental) Organization (such ...

s. Foreigners must be legally resident in Egypt. Foreign juridical persons must be established in Egypt or authorized to conduct their activities in Egypt; otherwise, they cannot be Founders. There must be at least ten founders, and the purpose of the CDA must not involve the making of

profit Profit may refer to: Business and law * Profit (accounting), the difference between the purchase price and the costs of bringing to market * Profit (economics), normal profit and economic profit * Profit (real property), a nonpossessory intere ...

. The Founders must have written ''Articles of Association'' signed by all the Founders, and have suitable headquarters in Egypt. The Articles of Association must contain: *The name of the Association, which should be inspired by its purpose, and not confusingly similar to any other Association operating within its geographical area. *The type and scope of the CDA's activities and its geographical area. *The address of the headquarters of the CDA. *The name, title, age, residence and nationality of each Founder. *The CDA's resources and method of utilization and disposal. *The representative bodies of the Association, the role of each, the method of electing, discharging and annulling or suspending membership as well as the

quorum A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...

necessary for valid meetings and valid resolutions. *System and conditions of membership and rights and obligations of members, particularly each member's right to have access to the Association's documents, attend and cast votes in the general assembly. *The financial control system. *Rules of amending the Association's

statute A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...

s and setting up branches, cases of termination and parties to which the Association's property will devolve in such cases. *A statement specifying the competent person to apply for an Association to acquire a public-benefit capacity. *A statement specifying the Founders’ Assembly representative authorized to conduct foundation procedures.

Conditions

These articles must be duly registered with the

Ministry of Social Solidarity The Ministry of Social Solidarity is the government body responsible for providing social safety networks for Egypt's most vulnerable citizens. Nivine El-Qabbage is its current minister after the previous minister Ghada Waly. Its vision is to red ...

, which is obligated to register the CDA within 60 days, unless the Ministry objects in writing. Should they object, the CDA may mitigate the objections within the time specified by the Ministry. Associations (and NGOs in general) are not permitted to form military or

para-military A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

formations or detachments; threaten national unity, violate public order or morality or advocate

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

against citizens, an account of sex, origin, colour, language, religion or

creed A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs of a community (often a religious community) in a form which is structured by subjects which summarize its core tenets. The ea ...

; practise any political or

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

activity exclusively restricted to political parties and trade unions; or to seek profit or practise any profit-oriented activity. However, adopting commercial controls to generate such income that contributes to the realization of the Association's purposes is permitted. CDAs are exempt from most taxes and

customs Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out of a country. Traditionally, customs ...

, and may accept contributions and donations from abroad, with the permission of the Ministry of Social Solidarity. CDAs must have a General Assembly of all active members, and a

Board of Directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

, of at least five members elected by the General Assembly for six year terms, and subject to the rules indicated in Law 84/2002. The percentage of Egypt Board Members must be at least equal to those of foreign members.

Civic Foundations

These differ from CDAs in that there is no minimum number of Founders. The Founders should have Articles of Association comprising the following information: *The Foundation name and its geographical jurisdiction and headquarters in Egypt. *The purpose for which it is established. *A detailed account of funds appropriated to realize the Foundation's purposes. *The foundation's management organization, including methods of appointing head and members of boards of trustees and manager.

Alternatives

A Foundation may also be established under an official

deed In common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right, or property and that is signed, attested, delivered, and in some jurisdictions, sealed. It is commonly associated with transferring ...

or registered

will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

, either of which shall be deemed to be the Statute for the Foundation. Each Foundation shall have a board of trustees to be composed of at least three members appointed by founder(s). A Foundation may receive funds from third parties subject to approval by the Minister of Social Solidarity.

References

{{Reflist Law of Egypt 2002 in law 2002 in Egypt Regulation of non-governmental organizations Organisations based in Egypt