Adding children on family ration cards is easier said than done, as Mona El-Fiqi finds out Although millions of families were glad now that the government will permit the addition of children on ration cards -- which provide monthly basic foodstuffs at subsidised prices -- the long-winded procedures are spoiling their excitement. On 2 February, the Ministry of Social Solidarity (MSS) began implementing Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif's January decree giving families with valid ration cards the right to add their children. This is the first time in two decades, since the government stopped the addition of children in 1988. According to the decree, children born between 1988 and 2005 can be added to their parents or grandparents' ration cards. This will add 15 million more citizens to the current 40 million beneficiaries of subsidised ration cards. The total subsidy provided by the government to the ration cards will be raised by LE1.2 billion. The addition of children will increase the family's quota of subsidised basic foods in proportion to the number of offspring added. The current monthly quota provided by a ration card for a person is one litre of cooking oil at LE1, compared to LE9 at the supermarket; one kilo of sugar at LE0.6, compared to the market price of LE3.5; and one kilo of rice at LE1, compared to LE3.5 on the market. An additional two litres of cooking oil can be purchased at LE3.5 per litre and two kilos of sugar at LE1.5 per kilo, regardless of the number of the beneficiaries. Ration cards are vital to many poor households. Hoda El-Sayed, a housewife and mother of five, said she pays LE22 per month for four kilos of rice, five litres of cooking oil and six kilos of sugar. "Although the quality is less than others on the market, they are sold at very good prices at a time when prices are continuously spiralling," asserted El-Sayed. But it is not only the poor who rely on ration cards, but also middle class families who in the past could afford living without heavy subsidies. Today, they are seeking to sign up for the financial aid. Mahmoud Abdel-Ghani, an engineer, got married in 1990 and is father of two: "I was able to cover my family's needs without a ration card, but now due to the increase in prices I need a ration card." Millions of people hurried to MSS offices across the country to register their children, but were shocked to find extremely long queues and a tall list of required documents. Housewife Magda Mohamed Shehata will have to come back another day when she has all the paperwork ready, "to stand in another long queue to add my children on my mother's ration card." Applicants standing outside a government bureau in Cairo said the biggest problem they face is getting the required documents, then filling out a very complicated form which is unlikely to be legible for the many illiterate people. "I have to come back another time because I filled the application incorrectly," complained one housewife. "I need someone to help me write it out before submission." The needed paperwork includes a birth certificate, the child's national identification number and those of the entire family. Moreover, a computerised identification card of the owner of the ration card is necessary. But since millions of the poor and simple do not have these documents, they need to have birth certificates and recent IDs issued. The result was a shocking scene outside the offices affiliated to the Ministry of Interior -- the body authorised to provide new birth certificates and ID cards -- across the country. Some living outside Cairo spent all night waiting outside their local offices to make sure they are early in line. In an attempt to make the process less burdensome, Minister of Social Solidarity Ali Moselhi announced that the registration of children will continue until the end of May, giving families more time and hopefully preventing more crowding. Moreover, Moselhi said his ministry will accept applications plus an LE7 fee if the applicant did not bring a new birth certificate along, then MSS will contact the Ministry of Interior to issue the certificates. By Saturday, Moselhi was even considering cancelling the birth certificate requirement altogether because it was too much trouble for everyone. Meanwhile, a senior administrator at MSS told Al-Ahram Weekly that the ministry did not receive clear instructions to receive applications without birth certificates, collect fees or contact the Ministry of Interior. "I cannot collect money from people without a clear plan and instructions of the next step," stated the official on condition of anonymity.
