The data driven story evaluates the value of the mendatory compensations for train accidents victims in case of death or complete disability which was 20.000 L.E (1253.42 $) from 2002 until February 2018 when the Railroad Authority increased it by 50%. t The stabilty of the total amount for a long time lead me to the idea of evaluating the value of the compensation during the perion from 2002 to 2019, to answer the question of the value of the number for a family that has lost its provider or need to pay for health care in case of complete
The project made a good echo, Al hurra Tv Channel interviewed the victim we interviewed and featured in the story after The published our story and The Global Investigative Journalism Network mentioned the story and appreciated it.
I used Google sheets to analyze data I gathered from The Egyptian central bank, The Central Agency for Mobilization and Statistics and other official organizations to answer 3 Questions in order to give a clear picture about the economic value of the compensation:
1. How the value of the compensation has changed against the value of Dollars from 2002 to 2019?
2. How many months a mandatory compensation would last if we used it to feed a family with the necessary food basket?
3. How many months a mandatory compensation would last if we used it to provide for one person near the poverty line?
I also used the information available from different sources to explain to the audience how the compensation system works, and the legal limitations to the mandatory compensation estimation in the Egyptian judiciary system for a train accident.
Also, My colleague Yusef Al araby used Adobe illustrator to illustrate the 4 infographics were produced to visualize the insights that that where found.
What was the hardest part of this project?
The hardest part was gathering data and understanding the compensation system, although A lot of press articles spotted the problems with the railroads system in Egypt, but the information about compensations and it’s regulations are either incomplete or inaccurate, It took me a lot of time to investigate the right information, and gather the credible data to use.
What can others learn from this project?
I think they can learn the importance of accuracy, When you say the mandatory compensation is devalued, you have to give the audience a way to understand and recognize that.