<!-- Start of picture text --> Private informal 32 222 62 9% (11%)<br>Private formal 18 28 17 3 34 1% (2%)<br>Public formal 3 2 84 1 10 10% (10%)<br>Women<br>Unemployed 8 2 4 13 73 7% (5%)<br>Out of labor force 9 11 5 84 73% (73%)<br>Private informal Private formal Public formal Un-employed Out of labor force<br><!-- End of picture text --> _Notes_ . This figure relies on panel data from the Egypt Labor Market Panel Survey in 2012 and 2018. We restrict our analysis to individuals who were interviewed in both rounds. We focus on those aged at least 20 years old in 2012 and at most 59 years old in 2018. We use transition matrices by sex to examine individuals’ transition between their work status/sector in 2012 and their work status/sector in 2018. We rely on the market definition of work status, search required (reference 1 week). The percentages reported at the end of each row show the shares of individuals in each employment status/sector in 2012, with the shares in 2018 reported in brackets. Panel weights are used.

Figure 4 and Figure 5 show the transition matrices across employment statuses/sectors, by education, for men and women, respectively. Across all education groups, unemployed and OLF men, at baseline, tended to find jobs (mostly in the informal private sector). Though transitions to the informal private sector remain the most likely transition among men who were unemployed or OLF in 2012, regardless of their educational attainment, we note that the highest the level of education, the greater the share transitioning to the formal sector, be it in the private or public sector. Similarly, we also find that men’s education also matters for within-sector transitions, and particularly for transitioning out of the private informal sector. Indeed, a third of men with above secondary education, who were employed in the private informal sector at baseline, successfully managed to transition to the formal sector (private or public) versus only 7% of informally employed men in 2012 with no formal education qualification.

As for women, we consistently find that those who were unemployed or OLF at baseline tended to drop out or remain out of the labor force, regardless of their education. However, women with above secondary education are much more likely to become employed or to remain unemployed—instead of dropping OLF—relative to women with lower levels of education. Public sector employment is highest among highly educated women (those with above secondary education), with a third of educated women being employed in the public sector in 2018 versus less than 1% of less educated women (with primary education or less). Similarly to men, we also find that the higher the educational level, the more likely it is to retain a public sector job between the two survey rounds. Indeed, 84% of women with above secondary education who had a public sector job in 2012 retained in 2018, while only a third of women with no education qualification did.

Figure 6 and Figure 7 show the transition matrices across employment statuses/sectors, by age groups, for men and women, respectively. Among men, those unemployed or out of labor force moved into employment between 2012 and 2018, especially among the younger cohorts. Men across all age groups exhibited high transitions from the formal private to the informal private sector between 2012 and 2018. Such transitions from the formal to the informal private sector are 10