Introduction
In 2023, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) called for universal access to the internet as a human right in a speech to the Human Rights Council. Despite broad consensus in the literature of international organizations and their bodies, as well as among some state representatives, on the need to recognize this right, only a limited number of countries have officially recognized it and committed, through their legislation, to guaranteeing its realization for their citizens.
Although there is growing acknowledgment that the internet has become a basic necessity of daily life, international recognition of the right to internet access has been slow. One possible reason is that internet services worldwide are treated as a commodity subject to the laws of supply and demand. This market is among the fastest-growing profitable sectors of the economy. As a result, entrenched interests continue to grow in influence and help maintain the purely commercial nature of internet access services.
Egypt is no different from other countries in terms of the high growth rates and profitability of the telecommunications and information technology sector. Internet access in Egypt is also subject to market demand and profit maximization. Although inaccurate claims continue to circulate that Egypt offers internet services at low prices compared to most countries, these services are priced beyond the financial reach of the vast majority of Egyptians.
The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) presents data showing a significant and steady increase in the number of internet subscribers year after year. Despite this increase, there is little interest in whether these subscriptions provide meaningful internet access or whether what citizens obtain through them meets the actual needs increasingly imposed by daily life in the digital age.
This paper discusses internet access pricing and service provision policies in Egypt, from a perspective fully committed to ensuring that Egyptians enjoy their right to fair and meaningful access to the internet, at a time when this right has become the fundamental guarantee for interacting with a rapidly evolving digital world.
The paper poses a pivotal question: Do internet access pricing policies in Egypt ensure fair and meaningful access for all Egyptians across social classes, or do they constitute a real obstacle to the enjoyment of this right?
To answer this question, the paper begins by presenting a practical tool for measuring the extent to which individuals enjoy the right to internet access. It then discusses the main question by reviewing the reality of internet service pricing policies in Egypt.
Next, the paper compares the prices of such services across several countries worldwide. It uses multiple approaches to link these prices to the income levels of individuals and families in Egypt and in those countries. The paper also discusses the possibility of defining the parameters of a process to measure the extent to which Egyptians enjoy the right to internet access.
Additionally, the paper addresses several factors contributing to the high prices of internet access services in Egypt. These include factors related to announced pricing policies, as well as practical factors associated with the nature of the Egyptian market and prevailing monopolistic practices. Finally, the paper presents a set of approaches to overcome the obstacle of internet access pricing, thereby enabling its provision as a fundamental right for citizens.
How can adequate enjoyment of the right to internet access be measured?
There are always ways to assess the extent to which citizens of any country enjoy rights such as freedom of expression, privacy, and others. This assessment usually involves examining the existing laws that protect these rights, as well as their comprehensiveness and effectiveness. It also includes evaluating the level of compliance with their implementation and monitoring the rates of their violation.
In general, there is ample evidence available for such assessments, and their broad outlines are rarely disputed.
However, the situation is different when it comes to the right to internet access. It is challenging to agree on the criteria for evaluating the extent to which citizens in different countries enjoy this right.
This challenge stems from the lack of consensus on what constitutes sufficient internet access. It also reflects a lack of clarity about the purposes such access must fulfill to be considered sufficient. Furthermore, questions arise about the feasibility of translating the practical purposes of internet access into measurable, monitorable numerical indicators.
For instance, it remains unclear whether achieving these purposes should be measured by a minimum number of hours of internet connectivity, the amount of data consumed within a specific timeframe, or other criteria. It is also unclear whether connection capacity should be taken into account.
In an attempt to address these questions, a study on the concept of “meaningful internet access” proposes four key factors for assessing whether available internet access is truly meaningful—that is, whether it fulfills the right to access the internet.
These factors are: adequate connection speed, possession of suitable devices and equipment, sufficient data availability, and regular internet use.
It should be noted that these factors are closely linked to the evolution of global patterns of daily internet use. This evolution has helped establish minimum standards for the online content experience.
One of the most prominent developments in recent years is the dominance of visual content, particularly videos, across much of the internet. This content makes data transfer speed a crucial factor in assessing whether meaningful internet access is achieved. This shift also imposes minimum limits on data consumption, based on the ability to access a reasonable amount of such content.
At the same time, the widespread use of the internet across many aspects of daily life has increased the need for regular and continuous access. Accordingly, the study concludes that meaningful internet access requires an unlimited connection with a speed of at least 10 Mbps. For example, meaningful access can be considered achieved if an individual owns a smartphone connected to the internet via a 4G network.
Do internet service prices and policies in Egypt allow for adequate network access?
Internet service prices in Egypt
Internet services in Egypt are currently provided by four main companies: Telecom Egypt, the state-owned company that owns the telecommunications infrastructure, along with Vodafone, Orange, and Etisalat Egypt.
These companies provide internet access via landline telephone lines or fiber optic networks. They also offer access via mobile networks, which mostly rely on 4G but still use 3G in some areas.
The four companies employ a similar pricing policy. They offer specific packages based on connection speed and data allowance, i.e., the maximum data consumption measured in gigabytes. None of these companies truly offers unlimited internet access, despite what they state on their official websites: the connection slows after exceeding the data allowance.
The companies follow similar pricing structures. The packages differ mainly in the variety of services or in the inclusion of additional entertainment services, such as free access to local or international streaming platforms.
Regarding internet services via fixed-line telephone networks, it is difficult to distinguish among the four companies in terms of service quality, as they all rely on the same network and equipment provided by Telecom Egypt.
In contrast, the companies differ in geographical scope and coverage when providing internet services via mobile networks, as each company owns its own network and transmission towers.
The four companies offer connection packages with varying speeds. They all use the same method to present these speeds, using the phrase “up to … megabits per second.” In reality, this means that the actual connection speed may be lower than the advertised speed. This is due to technical factors, as well as undisclosed operational policies used to serve large numbers of subscribers, which may exceed total available capacity. Currently, advertised speeds range between 30 Mbps and 200 Mbps.
Home internet package prices differ from those offered via mobile networks. Mobile connection speed depends on the type of network. In contrast, home internet package prices vary based on both connection speed and maximum data consumption.
At the minimum, a home internet package with speeds of up to 30 Mbps and a maximum monthly data allowance of 140 GB is offered for 210 EGP, before the 14% value-added tax (VAT) is applied. With VAT added, the final price for the consumer reaches 239.4 EGP, equivalent to approximately 5 US dollars.
In contrast, mobile internet packages are significantly more expensive than home internet services. These packages are offered in megabytes (MB) rather than gigabytes (GB), reflecting their higher cost. The smallest available package offers a maximum data allowance of 781 MB for 13 EGP, or 14.82 EGP after VAT, and is valid for 28 days.
Comparing mobile internet prices to home internet prices shows that the average cost of data consumption via mobile networks is approximately one hundred times higher than the corresponding cost for home internet.
This cost means that consuming a data volume equivalent to the smallest home internet package (140 GB) via mobile networks could cost around 3,200 EGP, or 3,648 EGP after adding VAT. In this context, it is worth noting that telecommunications companies in Egypt do not offer mobile internet packages exceeding 62,500 MB, and the price of this package is 585 EGP.
Despite the significant increase in the cost of mobile internet access compared to home internet, this type of connection remains the most widely used in Egypt. According to official data issued by (MCIT), the number of mobile internet users is approximately 91 million, compared to about 12.5 million home internet subscribers, reflecting the reliance of a large segment of the population on mobile internet, despite its high cost, either due to the lack of affordable alternatives or the irregularity of home internet services availability for large segments of the population.
Therefore, internet access pricing policies are particularly important when assessing the availability of regular, actual internet access and whether this access meets the conditions of fair and meaningful access.
Comparing Internet Prices in Egypt with the Rest of the World
The Global Relocate website provides a comparison of mobile network internet prices worldwide, based on the average price per gigabyte of data. According to estimates on the website, Egypt ranks 61st in terms of cost per gigabyte (from least to most expensive), with an average price of $0.65 USD (approximately 30.87 EGP) and an average connection speed of 25.11 Mbps. The same website indicates that countries like Fiji and Italy top the list of the least expensive countries, with the price per gigabyte estimated at around $0.09 USD.
The top ten countries include a diverse range of national income and development levels, from low- and middle-income countries such as Pakistan, India, and Cambodia to high-income countries such as Italy and France.
On the other hand, among the ten countries with the highest gigabyte costs, clear factors explain the high prices. This list includes remote areas like the Falkland Islands, countries suffering from armed conflicts and unrest that have destroyed their infrastructure, such as Yemen, as well as countries suffering from extreme poverty and severely weakened infrastructure, such as Zimbabwe, South Sudan, and the Central African Republic. Excluding these cases with special circumstances, countries like the United Arab Emirates, Canada, and the United States rank high in terms of cost, with prices of $4.61, $5.37, and $6 per gigabyte, respectively.
A review of these lists indicates that there is no direct, simple relationship between a country’s level of wealth or per capita national income and the prices of internet access services, and that a wide range of economic, regulatory, and technological factors influence the final prices of these services.
However, what remains crucial when assessing the relationship between internet prices and the right to access them is the extent to which these prices represent a burden on the vast majority of citizens, a matter directly linked to individuals’ and families’ actual income.
Therefore, simply comparing the official price of the service in Egypt with that in other countries is not a sufficient indicator of the extent to which Egyptians enjoy the right to internet access compared to citizens of those countries.
Several statistical tools are used to measure income levels across countries worldwide. The average per capita national income is the most common and simplest of these tools to calculate, as it is calculated by dividing the total national income by the population. However, despite its prevalence, this indicator is among the furthest from accurately reflecting the reality of income, given its disregard for the significant disparities in income distribution within society.
In contrast, other tools are used, such as average wages or returns on labor across sectors, as well as median income, which is considered one of the closest indicators of actual income. The median income is the income level at which half the population earns less than, while the other half earns more, thus avoiding some of the problems associated with income averages. However, it is not without its own shortcomings.
The World Population Review website provides a ranking of countries worldwide by median annual income. According to that, the median income in Egypt is approximately $1,455 annually, while the per capita national income is around $19,094. It is worth noting that calculating median income is usually limited to individuals with income or to the primary breadwinner, which is particularly important in the Egyptian context, where the vast majority of families depend on a single breadwinner, while the average family size is around four members.
Using data from the aforementioned sources, the ratio of internet service costs to income can be compared between Egypt and several other countries.
To make this comparison more practical, the cost of 100 GB of data is compared with the monthly income. In Egypt, 100 GB of mobile internet access costs approximately $65, while the median monthly income is around $121.25, meaning internet costs account for about 53% of this income.
The following table compares this ratio with a diverse sample of countries, some with income levels similar to Egypt’s and others that are high-income or have significantly different internet service prices.
| Country | Median income | Price of 100 GB | Percentage |
| Egypt | 121.25 | 65 | 53% |
| France | 1364.33 | 20 | 1% |
| Pakistan | 116.58 | 12 | 10% |
| United States | 1608.83 | 600 | 37% |
| Morocco | 226.33 | 63 | 28% |
As explained earlier, the prices used in this comparison reflect internet access via mobile networks. In contrast, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) provides a comparative map of fixed-line internet service prices.
However, this map relies on comparing these prices to the average per capita gross domestic product (GDP), an indicator that does not accurately reflect individuals’ actual income.
This map also assumes a monthly consumption of 5 GB, a low estimate that does not reflect typical data usage. Nevertheless, the following table shows the percentages from this map for the same countries, for comparison.
| Country | Ratio of the price of 5 GB to the average per capita GDP: | Price percentage for 100 GB: |
| Egypt | 2.52% | 50.4% |
| France | 0.94% | 18.8% |
| Pakistan | 4.04% | 80.8% |
| United States | 0.76% | 15.2% |
| Morocco | 3.04% | 60.8% |
It is difficult to compare commercial internet package offers across countries for direct comparison, given the significant variation in available speeds. Furthermore, most countries offer internet services with unlimited access, unlike Egypt, which relies on packages with specific speeds and data allowances. However, some illustrative examples from the aforementioned countries can be used.
For instance, the French company Orange, which provides fixed-line internet services in Egypt, France, and Morocco, offers internet packages in France with speeds up to 8 gigabits per second, at monthly prices ranging from approximately €28 ($33) to €45 ($53). This price represents between 2.4% – 3.88% of the median income in France.
The company also offers internet packages in Morocco at 50 megabits per second for 349 Moroccan dirhams (approximately $14.65), which is about 6.47% of the median income there.
In contrast, the minimum price for a landline internet package in Egypt, with a maximum data allowance of 140 GB and speeds up to 30 Mbps, is approximately EGP 239.4 (around $5), equivalent to about 4.12% of the median income.
As a final note, the Income and Expenditure Survey issued by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) in its latest edition, published in September 2021, indicates that the average annual income of an Egyptian family is approximately EGP 69,100, equivalent to about EGP 5,758 per month. This figure is very close to the median income estimate used in previous comparisons, suggesting that the data issued by official bodies in Egypt differs only slightly from the estimates upon which this paper is based.
The Right to Internet Access Under Commercial Service Pricing in Egypt
This paper discusses internet access service prices in Egypt and compares them with those in various countries worldwide. It also uses median income comparisons between Egypt and these countries. However, the fundamental question remains: how do these figures and comparative ratios relate to the right to internet access, given its definition as meaningful access?
In principle, the existence of a maximum monthly data allowance across all commercially available internet packages in Egypt contradicts the requirement for regular network access, a fundamental component of meaningful internet access.
To estimate the daily data consumption required to achieve this type of access, data consumption rates associated with the use of the most popular websites and applications in Egypt and globally can be used, as illustrated in the following table:
| Website | Average Data Consumption During One Hour of Browsing |
| TikTok | 300 MB to 1.8 GB |
| 50 MB to 1 GB | |
| YouTube | 80 MB to 1.5 GB (excluding high-quality video streaming options) |
| Web | 60 to 80 MB |
The estimation for the most commonly used apps and websites is those in relation to grocery and other shopping, as well as rides and transportation services (such as Uber and Careem), along with personal communication apps (such as WhatsApp, Messenger, and Telegram), and they consume data at rates within the ranges indicated in the table. In contrast, video streaming services tend to approach the upper end of these rates.
Generally speaking, intermittent internet use throughout the day, estimated at 3–5 hours per person, requires data consumption ranging from 2.4 to 4 gigabytes per day, assuming an average of approximately 800 megabytes per hour, which accounts for variations in usage patterns.
Accordingly, the daily data consumption for a family of four, which is the average family size in Egypt, ranges from 9.6 to 16 gigabytes per day, equivalent to approximately 288 to 480 gigabytes per month. This level of consumption incurs a monthly cost, according to the minimum-speed packages available in Egypt, ranging from approximately 570 EGP (around 650 pounds after VAT) to 850 EGP (around 969 pounds after VAT).
This cost accounts for between 11.2% and 16.8% of the average monthly income of an Egyptian family, according to the aforementioned CAPMAS data.
It is worth noting in this context that the income of the majority of Egyptian families is necessarily lower than this average. Therefore, these indicators, combined, suggest that the level of consumption required to achieve meaningful internet access is, in reality, beyond the financial capabilities of a large segment of Egyptian families.
This fact is supported by the significant disparity between the ratio of internet service costs to median income in Egypt and countries like France and the United States, even though the service prices in absolute terms are much higher in these countries.
This disparity becomes even more significant when considering that the cost of providing internet services in those countries is higher than in Egypt, due to higher average wages and construction and manufacturing costs.
In this regard, it is worth noting that, according to available estimates, revenues from internet services in Egypt exceed total public investments allocated to the communications and information technology sector several times over. This situation raises legitimate questions about the profitability of providing these services compared to other countries.
Although detailed international statistics on this aspect are unavailable, the rapid growth of the communications and information technology sector in Egypt, and its status as one of the fastest-growing sectors in recent years, suggest high profitability.
Factors Affecting Internet Service Prices in Egypt
Costs of Developing Telecommunications Networks
According to official announcements regarding the Egyptian state budget for the fiscal year 2025-2026, the government allocated approximately 13 billion EGP to public investments in the telecommunications and information technology sector. A significant portion of these investments is directed towards infrastructure projects related to internet access services. This sector has witnessed high levels of government spending in recent years, driven by the rapid expansion of its activities and the ongoing need to develop infrastructure to keep pace.
It is also worth noting that telecommunications networks in Egypt have been, and still are, in need of replacement and modernization due to the demands of increasingly high-speed data transmission. Foremost among these processes is the replacement of copper cable networks with fiber optic cables, a process that is not yet complete. A legitimate question arises in this context, regarding the extent to which subscription fees for internet access services cover this investment expenditure.
According to official data from MCIT, the number of mobile internet subscriptions in Egypt exceeded 91 million by the end of 2025, while fixed-line internet subscriptions reached approximately 12 million.
Assuming that all these subscriptions fall within the lowest category with the lowest monthly service costs, the total monthly subscription fees internet users pay in Egypt – according to this assumption – exceed the total public allocations for investments in the communications and information technology sector several times over, raising further questions about the service pricing structure and its relationship to infrastructure development costs and the right of citizens to equitable internet access.
Monopoly over Infrastructure Development and Access
The state, through its subsidiary Telecom Egypt, holds a monopoly over ownership of the telecommunications infrastructure in Egypt, including telecommunications networks and all related equipment and facilities. Telecom Egypt makes this infrastructure available to companies operating in the telecommunications and information technology sector at a cost it determines.
Private-sector companies, both local and international, are not permitted to establish independent telecommunications networks, unlike in many countries, and the justification is mostly national security.
This regulatory framework creates a dynamic that severely restricts competition in the internet services market in Egypt, as there is little room for competition on infrastructure costs, which constitute a major component of total service costs. All companies operating in the market rely on the maximum speeds and data limits offered by state-owned networks, limiting their ability to provide services that differ in quantity or quality.
Furthermore, Telecom Egypt is also an internet service provider, and more accurately, the largest internet service provider in Egypt in terms of subscriber base, giving it a distinct competitive position compared to other companies operating in the market.
Solidarity Monopoly Practices
A solidarity monopoly is a situation in which a limited number of companies control the market for a particular good or service. They do not actually compete with each other, but rather converge or agree to adopt uniform pricing policies for these goods or services, as well as the nature of the benefits they offer customers.
This pattern, in its impact on consumers, is no different from traditional monopoly, where a single company controls the market and has broad power to set prices, thereby achieving the highest possible profit margins.
In the Egyptian internet services market, clear signs of collusive monopolistic practices can be observed. Service providers offer packages that are largely similar in terms of prices, speeds, and data limits, which limits comparisons between them. In various cases, the main differences between these companies are limited to the efficiency of customer service or the quality of technical support.
Within this limited margin of competition, Telecom Egypt holds the largest share of subscribers, benefiting from its integrated role as both infrastructure owner and service provider, enabling it to address technical malfunctions more quickly than other companies in the market.
Imposing Value Added Tax (VAT) on Internet Access Services
The Egyptian government imposes a 14% Value Added Tax (VAT) on internet access services, effectively increasing the final cost for users. VAT is an indirect consumption tax, the burden of which falls disproportionately on those with limited incomes, especially when levied on essential services widely used.
Given the rapid shift towards internet reliance across daily life, including work, education, access to public services, and social interaction, subjecting internet services to this tax amounts to a price increase. It adds to the financial burden on citizens, limiting fair and regular access to the internet as well as negatively impacting the right to internet access.
Ways to Overcome the Obstacle of Pricing Policies for the Right to Internet Access
Regulating Pricing Practices and Service Provision Policies
A discussion of internet access pricing policies in Egypt reveals that, in practice, these policies result in prices that are difficult to consider fair, especially given the gap between the actual cost of providing the service and its commercial price.
It does not seem possible to justify this level of pricing based on what is required to develop telecommunications infrastructure, as the published figures for public investments in the telecommunications and information technology sector, indicate levels that are significantly lower than the total revenues generated from selling internet services, even when calculating these revenues at their minimum, indicating that the pricing policies currently in place in Egypt require serious review and adjustment to achieve a greater balance between the interests of service providers and the rights of users. Expanding competition among internet service providers in Egypt is a key approach to addressing this imbalance, and it can be achieved by encouraging more companies to enter the sector, thereby enabling a wider variety of offers and prices. This approach is particularly important given the limited number of internet service providers in Egypt compared to most countries worldwide, regardless of income levels or the nature of their economic systems.
Furthermore, there is a need to reassess the system of internet packages with data caps; a system no longer in use in many countries, imposes additional restrictions on internet use in Egypt, indirectly increases the actual cost of accessing the network, in addition to its association in some cases with practices that lack transparency, such as not transferring unused data before the package expires, effectively meaning that users pay for data they cannot use, raising legitimate questions about the fairness of these policies and the protection of consumer rights.
Providing Alternatives for Low-Income Individuals
Many countries offer alternatives and policies to enable low-income individuals to access the internet. The United States is a prominent example in this context, where the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) offers a program that allows eligible households to obtain internet access subscriptions with a discount from commercial companies, without discrimination in service or connection quality compared to other subscribers. In addition to this program, other initiatives allow eligible groups to obtain discounted subscriptions from major companies such as AT&T and Cox.
Similar initiatives could be adopted in Egypt, especially given the existence of social groups whose eligibility for such discounts can be clearly identified. These categories include, for example, government sector employees within certain officially established salary limits, students at various educational levels, especially with the increasing reliance on the internet for delivering lessons and educational materials, residents of rural and remote areas, and those living in informal urban housing. Targeting these groups helps expand equitable access to the internet and reduce the digital divide between different segments of society.
Full or Partial Tax Exemptions:
Imposing value-added tax (VAT) on internet services is, in principle, contrary to the stated purpose of this tax, as it imposes an additional burden on lower-income groups rather than contributing to social justice.
Therefore, there is a need to reconsider whether to include internet services in this tax and, if so, to exempt them, given their essential role in the daily lives of all citizens, particularly in light of the accelerating digital transformation and the increasing reliance on the internet to deliver many government services. On the other hand, if specific standards for connection speeds and data consumption limits are adopted as approximate indicators of income levels among internet users, then at least internet packages within the minimum limits could be exempt from VAT, while maintaining VAT on higher-speed and higher-consumption packages.
In the event of transitioning to an unlimited access system, it would still be possible to impose VAT on consumption exceeding a fair limit, which can be technically implemented without significant difficulties.
Conclusion
It should be emphasized that this paper does not claim that internet access prices are the only obstacle preventing Egyptians from exercising their right to access the network, but rather aims to demonstrate that these prices constitute a major obstacle among several others.
The paper also indicates that this obstacle can be addressed within a shorter timeframe than other factors related to broader economic and structural conditions, which require more time to overcome.
Therefore, approaching the goal of providing internet access as a right for Egyptian citizens remains possible if the pricing practices for internet access services are reviewed, modified, and amended to achieve fairness and equity.
The right to internet access is currently of particular importance, since internet use is no longer limited to entertainment or optional purposes, but has become an essential element intertwined with various aspects of daily life. The rapid digital transformation has led to widespread reliance on the internet in the workplace, whether through remote work or job hunting, and to education at all levels increasingly dependent on digital platforms and e-learning materials.
Similarly, the use of the internet has expanded in healthcare, enabling booking appointments, telemedicine consultations, and access to essential health information. It also plays a growing role in providing government services, conducting banking transactions, facilitating social networking, and enabling access to essential goods and services.
In this context, internet access has become a prerequisite for full participation in economic, social, and cultural life, and a fundamental tool for exercising other rights, including the right to education, the right to work, the right to health, and the right to information.
Therefore, ensuring fair, regular, and meaningful access to the internet is a social and legal imperative imposed by the nature of contemporary life. Failure to provide such access deepens inequalities and digital exclusion across different segments of society.