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Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media
This study examines Egyptian government discourse on refugees in 2024, a year characterized by heightened regional displacement and the enactment of Egypt’s first Asylum Law (Law No. 164 of 2024). Using a multidisciplinary framework that combines framing analysis with van Dijk's socio-cognitive appr...
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AUC Knowledge Fountain
2026
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| _version_ | 1867613432806637568 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Kohail, Habiba |
| author_browse | Kohail, Habiba |
| author_facet | Kohail, Habiba |
| author_sort | Kohail, Habiba |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | This study examines Egyptian government discourse on refugees in 2024, a year characterized by heightened regional displacement and the enactment of Egypt’s first Asylum Law (Law No. 164 of
2024). Using a multidisciplinary framework that combines framing analysis with van Dijk's socio-cognitive approach, the study systemically analyzes how the government construct refugees on social
media and sets the boundaries of their inclusion in Egypt.
The thesis analyzes the Egyptian government discourse on refugees across official social media platforms from January 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024, a period that witnessed an increase in the government engagement in the refugee issue as a result of the growing number of refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt that have exceeded one million. The corpus consists of 110 social media post published by two government entities: the Egyptian Cabinet and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates (MoFA). Employing a mixed-methods approach, the study quantitatively examines dominant frames, the frequency of descriptive elements, and the conflation of the terms “refugees” and “migrants.” This is complemented by qualitative critical discourse analysis (CDA), which investigates lexical choices, metaphors, macro- and micro-structures, and underlying political ideologies in line with Van Dijk’s socio-cognitive model. Through this approach, the study identifies dominant political ideologies in discourse and analyzes how they shape policy orientations and define the boundaries of refugees’ inclusion in Egypt.
Key findings from the analysis include the identification of 423 distinct frames, with the Capacity and Resource Frame, External Regulation and Reputation Frame, and Economic Frame emerging as the most dominant in government discourse. Analysis of lexical choices revealed frequent conflation of the terms “refugees” and “migrants”, alongside repeated references to the number of refugees. Further ideological examination highlighted a strategic use of positive self-representation coupled with negative other representation, reflecting how the government frames its own role and actions in managing refugee issues and its political priorities regarding the topic. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-3775 |
| institution | American University in Cairo (Egypt) |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:36:03.647Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| publisherStr | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| spelling | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-3775 Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media Kohail, Habiba This study examines Egyptian government discourse on refugees in 2024, a year characterized by heightened regional displacement and the enactment of Egypt’s first Asylum Law (Law No. 164 of 2024). Using a multidisciplinary framework that combines framing analysis with van Dijk's socio-cognitive approach, the study systemically analyzes how the government construct refugees on social media and sets the boundaries of their inclusion in Egypt. The thesis analyzes the Egyptian government discourse on refugees across official social media platforms from January 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024, a period that witnessed an increase in the government engagement in the refugee issue as a result of the growing number of refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt that have exceeded one million. The corpus consists of 110 social media post published by two government entities: the Egyptian Cabinet and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates (MoFA). Employing a mixed-methods approach, the study quantitatively examines dominant frames, the frequency of descriptive elements, and the conflation of the terms “refugees” and “migrants.” This is complemented by qualitative critical discourse analysis (CDA), which investigates lexical choices, metaphors, macro- and micro-structures, and underlying political ideologies in line with Van Dijk’s socio-cognitive model. Through this approach, the study identifies dominant political ideologies in discourse and analyzes how they shape policy orientations and define the boundaries of refugees’ inclusion in Egypt. Key findings from the analysis include the identification of 423 distinct frames, with the Capacity and Resource Frame, External Regulation and Reputation Frame, and Economic Frame emerging as the most dominant in government discourse. Analysis of lexical choices revealed frequent conflation of the terms “refugees” and “migrants”, alongside repeated references to the number of refugees. Further ideological examination highlighted a strategic use of positive self-representation coupled with negative other representation, reflecting how the government frames its own role and actions in managing refugee issues and its political priorities regarding the topic. 2026-02-15T08:00:00Z thesis application/pdf https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2713 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3775/viewcontent/Habiba_Kohail_Thesis.pdf Theses and Dissertations AUC Knowledge Fountain Refugees Refugee Ministerial Narratives State Framing Politics of Representation Government Discourse Refugees Critical and Cultural Studies Mass Communication Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation Public Policy Social Influence and Political Communication Social Media Speech and Rhetorical Studies |
| spellingShingle | Refugees Refugee Ministerial Narratives State Framing Politics of Representation Government Discourse Refugees Critical and Cultural Studies Mass Communication Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation Public Policy Social Influence and Political Communication Social Media Speech and Rhetorical Studies Kohail, Habiba Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media |
| title | Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media |
| title_full | Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media |
| title_fullStr | Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media |
| title_full_unstemmed | Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media |
| title_short | Refugees in Egypt: State Framing, Ministerial Narratives, and the Politics of Representation on Social Media |
| title_sort | refugees in egypt state framing ministerial narratives and the politics of representation on social media |
| topic | Refugees Refugee Ministerial Narratives State Framing Politics of Representation Government Discourse Refugees Critical and Cultural Studies Mass Communication Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation Public Policy Social Influence and Political Communication Social Media Speech and Rhetorical Studies |
| url | https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2713 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3775/viewcontent/Habiba_Kohail_Thesis.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kohailhabiba refugeesinegyptstateframingministerialnarrativesandthepoliticsofrepresentationonsocialmedia |