In May, Alia El-Sayed was forced to leave her home in a village in Luxor Governorate and move to Cairo, where she rented a new apartment to live safely with her three daughters. She fled an imminent danger that began to haunt them at their doorstep—the rampant spread of drugs in her village in Al-Bayadiya, where dozens of young men have fallen victim to new and dangerous substances that, as she describes, “turn them into human monsters.”
Alia, a 40-year-old teacher, tells Zawia3 that she no longer feels safe or at ease. She now accompanies her twin daughters to lessons and wherever they go, fearing that someone might assault them. “Dozens of young men in our village are taking new, unidentified types of drugs that make them lose consciousness completely. They become extremely aggressive and try to attack passersby. So I preferred to leave with my daughters to protect them, especially since my husband died years ago,” she says.
She did not turn to the authorities out of fear of getting into trouble with the families of those young men. “I preferred to move with my daughters to a safer environment. Reporting drug dealers or even users is not without risk. It could expose me to revenge, and my daughters might be harmed. That’s exactly what I’m trying to avoid,” she explains.
Alia’s fears are not exaggerated. In recent months, Egyptian governorates have witnessed a series of violent crimes directly or indirectly linked to drug use, reflecting how serious this phenomenon has become for both social and family security.
In Luxor, a gruesome crime shocked public opinion last January when a young man killed his neighbor, severed his head, and walked with it through the street. Investigations revealed that the perpetrator was under the influence of “shabu,” one of the most dangerous forms of methamphetamine that causes hallucinations and extreme aggression. Only weeks later, in February of the same year, Gharbia Governorate woke up to an equally horrific crime: a father murdered his infant son and decapitated him while under the influence of drugs.
The link between drugs and murder is not limited to Upper Egypt or the Delta. In Dakahlia, the Mansoura Criminal Court sentenced a man to death in December 2024 for killing his mother after disputes related to his drug trade. In Qalyubia, a murder took place in the Al-Khosous district in April 2024 after a citizen objected to a worker taking drugs in front of his house. The worker responded by stabbing him to death.
In Sharqia, another tragic crime occurred in July when a young man burned his mother alive after a family quarrel. Case files revealed he was in possession of hashish for personal use. In Fayoum, a husband killed his wife in August after repeated disputes that investigations confirmed stemmed from his drug addiction.
Official data from Egypt’s Fund for Combating and Treating Addiction and Substance Abuse, affiliated with the Ministry of Social Solidarity, indicate that 5.9% of the population—around six million people—use drugs, while 2.4% are classified as addicts, meaning they have developed full pathological dependence on narcotic substances. These figures show that Egypt exceeds the global average drug-use rate, which United Nations reports estimate at around 5.2%, underscoring the seriousness of the local situation.
Although this percentage may seem limited compared to Egypt’s population of over 105 million, the age distribution of users reveals the true danger. Official reports confirm that more than 50% of drug users in Egypt are between 15 and 25 years old—the very youth group on which the state pins its hopes for the future and the labor market. Moreover, 27% of users are from the manual labor and day-wage workforce, directly affecting productivity and workplace safety.
Other studies issued by the Ministry of Health and the Addiction Fund show that drug-use rates in some governorates exceed the national average, particularly in Cairo, Giza, and Alexandria, where dense populations and easier access make drug availability higher. Conversely, addiction rates are increasing in rural and Upper Egyptian areas, where poverty, unemployment, and social emptiness drive youth toward drugs, albeit at slightly lower rates than in large cities.
Notably, a wide gap remains between official statistics and what is reported on the ground. Many psychiatrists and addiction specialists believe the announced figures are “conservative” and do not reflect the full reality, especially given the difficulty of tracking use in informal and rural areas and the existence of users who go uncounted in official surveys.
Unofficial estimates suggest that up to 10% or more of the population may be affected by drug use to varying degrees—turning the phenomenon into a national crisis rather than merely an individual health issue.
Doubling of Addiction Treatment Centers
While official figures indicate a decline in drug use rates over recent years, Egypt has witnessed a remarkable expansion in its network of government-run addiction treatment centers during the past decade. In 2014, the country had only 12 such centers, but the number gradually doubled to reach 28 by 2021. In 2022, it rose further to 30 treatment centers, according to data from the Fund for Combating and Treating Addiction and Substance Abuse. This expansion reflects an official orientation toward broadening the scope of treatment and rehabilitation services in response to the steadily rising rates of drug use.
Despite this official expansion, major challenges remain—foremost among them is the limited capacity of treatment facilities. The number of hospital beds allocated for addiction treatment in public hospitals is estimated at only about 1,500 nationwide, a modest figure compared to the thousands of cases requiring specialized medical and psychological care.
In parallel, the country has seen a wide spread of unlicensed rehabilitation centers operating outside any official supervision. Reports indicate that more than 500 such centers exist, around 50 of them located in the Mokattam district of Cairo alone. These centers pose a direct threat to patients’ safety, as they lack the required medical and legal standards, increasing the risks of relapse and exposing patients to human rights violations.
While the growth in government-run centers represents a tangible achievement, curbing this parallel phenomenon remains an essential condition for building an integrated and effective treatment system, as documented by an investigative report published by the ARIJ platform.
No Dose, No Relief: Egypt’s Methadone Shortage Hits Patients Hard
The Drug War
Dr. Ibrahim Magdy Hussein, a consultant in psychiatry and addiction treatment, believes that the spread of modern drugs in Egypt is linked to several intertwined factors, particularly after 2011 and the subsequent period of security breakdown. He explained that a new category of substances known as synthetic or designer drugs has emerged—chemically manufactured narcotics that enter the body through various forms such as aromatic herbs or bath salts. These substances are cheap, difficult to trace, and far more potent than traditional drugs.
Speaking to Zawia3, Dr. Hussein said that the spread of these drugs cannot be understood apart from the security context. He views it as part of what is known globally as the “drug war,” a term referring to the use of narcotics as a tool to corrupt or destroy societies. He added that the entry of such drugs into the Egyptian market is tied to theories of intelligence and psychological warfare, which makes monitoring and tracking them extremely difficult—especially since they are widely available in multiple forms and at low cost.
From a medical perspective, Dr. Hussein explained that doses of synthetic drugs have a multiplied effect compared to traditional narcotics, leading to cases of extreme aggression and recklessness among users and pushing them toward experimenting with higher doses. He believes that these combined factors—from cheap prices to security gaps and covert warfare—have all contributed to the significant rise in drug use in Egyptian society, calling for a comprehensive intervention by both health and security authorities to mitigate its grave consequences.
In recent years, Egypt’s drug landscape has undergone a profound transformation in the types of substances circulating among users. For decades, hashish and bango (a local form of cannabis) remained the most common and culturally embedded drugs. But since the mid-2010s, a new wave of synthetic drugs such as “Strox,” “Voodoo,” and “crystal meth (Shabu)” has reshaped the phenomenon, making it far more dangerous.
According to data from the Fund for Combating and Treating Addiction and Substance Abuse and reports by the Ministry of Health, hashish still ranks first among the most commonly used drugs, accounting for more than 50% of cases treated in rehabilitation centers. It is followed by Tramadol, which, despite tighter controls on its distribution since 2018, continues to be widely available in the drug market due to easy smuggling and its popularity among drivers and laborers seeking a “cheap stimulant.”
What worries doctors most, however, is the rise of synthetic drugs. Substances like Strox and Voodoo have quickly become among the most widespread, particularly among university students and teenagers. These drugs are cheaper than hashish and easier to distribute through small networks that require no farmland or traditional smuggling routes. Although the state officially listed them as banned narcotics in 2019, their market has remained active. They are often produced in primitive ways inside hidden workshops using lethal chemical compounds.
As for crystal meth, known locally as Shabu, it entered the Egyptian market from East Asian countries through smuggling routes across the Red Sea and Sinai. Despite its higher price compared to other substances, it has found its way into certain social segments, particularly among the affluent and young people seeking a “fast high.” The danger of Shabu lies in its rapid and devastating physical and psychological effects. Reports from addiction specialists indicate that users can reach a state of complete mental collapse within just a few months of use. The share of synthetic drug users, including Shabu, rose from 17% to 32% by 2024, making Shabu one of the most widespread synthetic drugs in Egypt today.
This shift in the country’s drug map means that the state’s response can no longer focus solely on combating traditional narcotics. It now requires new strategies that take into account the nature of synthetic drugs, which need no farmland or large trafficking routes—they can be produced and distributed locally, quickly, and cheaply. This poses a growing challenge for state authorities.
Dr. Abdel-Azim El-Khodrawy, a psychiatrist and addiction specialist, tells Zawia3 that the issue is no longer limited to individuals but has become rooted in the surrounding social culture. “When drug use spreads among older youth, it creates a climate that paves the way for younger generations to follow, especially as drugs become more abundant and accessible across neighborhoods,” he explains. Prices, he adds, are “within reach,” making the first experience closer than ever.
El-Khodrawy points out that psychological and social pressures serve as the primary fuel for the continuation of the crisis. “The absence of healthy mechanisms for problem-solving pushes many people to seek quick escape through a common phrase: ‘I use it to forget,’” he says. With new substances entering the Egyptian market—such as Strox, Voodoo, Shadow, Powder, Flakka, and eventually Ice or Shabu, the most expensive and most lethal—the recovery process has become more complex, depending on individual willpower, environment, and treatment programs.
What is even more dangerous than drug use itself, El-Khodrawy warns, are the social and security disasters that follow. Drugs, he explains, are behind a surge in violent crimes and road accidents, as psychological disorders like psychosis can make users “extremely violent and capable of committing shocking crimes.” Egypt has already witnessed multiple such cases in recent years. He concludes: “In theory, the economic crisis should curb the phenomenon, but in reality, it fuels drug use under the weight of frustration and societal stagnation.”
Shocking Numbers Linking Crime and Drug Use
In pursuit of accuracy and the most reliable data—particularly given the absence of official estimates on the relationship between drug proliferation and the recent rise in crime rates—Zawia3 conducted a systematic review of local and official newspapers and news websites covering the period from roughly August 2022 to August 2025.
The sample revealed that synthetic substances—particularly Strox, Voodoo, and Shabu—appeared repeatedly in crime reports involving violent assaults and family murders. In several cases, investigators or official reports explicitly mentioned drug use during or prior to the incidents. This recurring link has made these substances a major concern when studying the sudden eruption of violent behavior associated with drug use.
Recent police and traffic campaigns have also uncovered alarmingly high numbers of vehicle drivers testing positive for drug use—most commonly hashish, Tramadol, and other substances. Similarly, police seizures and court cases reveal the existence of a domestic distribution network made up of small-scale dealers and primitive workshops producing synthetic drugs. This structure makes such substances easily accessible to broader age and social groups—students, day laborers, and youth in informal neighborhoods. It also helps explain how these cheap but psychologically powerful drugs have spread so rapidly across Egyptian society.
Women at Risk
Recent studies issued by the Fund for Combating and Treating Addiction and Substance Abuse under Egypt’s Cabinet indicate that drug addiction among women has risen noticeably in recent years—a trend previously unseen at this scale. Informed sources estimate that the rate of female drug use has increased by about 25% compared to earlier statistics, reflecting a widening circle of addiction that demands attention.
In 2017, women accounted for roughly 28% of total drug users in Egypt, a figure that saw a slight rise by 2021. However, reaching precise estimates remains difficult due to social and cultural factors: the heavy stigma attached to addiction often prevents reporting, while fear of legal consequences deters many from seeking medical help. The latest available data up to 2022 show that women represent only 2% of total visitors to treatment centers, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
National surveys have historically shown low rates of drug use among women. A 2013 survey revealed that only 1.1% of women had ever used narcotics. Meanwhile, 2019 data recorded substance use disorders among females at a rate of 620 cases per 100,000 population, with the disease burden reaching 176 per 100,000. Inside treatment facilities, heroin remains the most commonly used drug among women—accounting for 54.9% of female cases in 2022 (down from 68.4% in 2021)—followed by hashish at 18.3% and Tramadol at 14.8%.
These indicators suggest that the health burden of drug use among Egyptian women has been rising steadily since the 1990s. Yet the lack of sufficient reporting and the difficulty of accessing gender-sensitive treatment services make the statistical picture far from representative of the actual situation.
What Is the Solution?
Dr. Abdel-Azim El-Khodrawy believes that the best mechanism to combat the spread of drugs is prevention rather than treatment, noting that this may be the most difficult strategy but also the most effective in the long run. He explained that prevention begins with raising awareness and individual sensitivity to the dangers of drug use, stressing the need to eliminate smoking and drug-use scenes in films and television dramas that portray the drug-taking hero as a role model.
El-Khodrawy emphasizes that continuous and repeated awareness campaigns are the cornerstone of any successful prevention strategy. He adds that closing suspicious outlets and tightening penalties for both use and trafficking are essential. “The battle against drugs is, at its core, a battle of awareness,” he says, underscoring that education should target mothers in particular, as they play a crucial role in instilling rejection of drugs in children from an early age—thus building a generation resilient to addiction.
Experts generally conclude that confronting the drug epidemic in Egypt requires a comprehensive approach combining prevention, legal enforcement, medical care, and social education. While prevention and awareness emphasize the role of families, schools, and communities, the medical front must focus on addressing the growing power and impact of synthetic drugs. With ongoing security gaps and the persistence of illegal distribution networks, only a coordinated framework—linking awareness campaigns, strict legislation, and specialized treatment services—offers an effective path to curbing drug proliferation and protecting society from its devastating consequences.
