The present study examines determinants of job search propensity of unemployed women in
Egypt, and evaluates changes in their search propensity (1998-2006), to examine the effect of transition
towards a market-oriented economy away from the public sector employment guarantee, on which they
depended for decades, on their propensity to search. The results reveal that women have less job search
propensity than men. The gender gap is wider excluding registration at government employment offices.
Females are still mainly dependent on the government to find a job. Analyzing determinants of women's job
search propensity reveals significant effect of personal, household characteristics and labor market conditions.
There is an inverted U-shaped relation between age and female's job search propensity. Education and
previous work experience positively affect women' job search. Women living in households with high
dependency ratio and those living in areas with high unemployment rates have higher job search propensity.