NuMbeR of MARRIAgeS dowN IN 2017

> The number of marriages across Egypt fell by nearly 3 per cent in 2017 due to rising costs.

> Tough economic reforms including a devaluation of the country’s pound in late 2016 have led to a dramatic increase in prices.

> In 2012, the average cost of a wedding was 61,000 Egyptian pounds as the currency traded at around 6.15 to the dollar, compared with nearly 18 now.

> Rania Salem, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto, says all of the necessities that come with getting married are going to be more expensive. ‘I expect people to stay in the single state or engagement period longer and longer.’