Country Profile
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COUNTRY PROFILE Egypt Our quarterly Country Report on Egypt analyses current trends. This annual Country Profile provides background political and economic information. 1997-98 The Economist Intelligence Unit 15 Regent Street, London SW1Y 4LR United Kingdom The Economist Intelligence Unit The Economist Intelligence Unit is a specialist publisher serving companies establishing and managing operations across national borders. For over 50 years it has been a source of information on business developments, economic and political trends, government regulations and corporate practice worldwide. The EIU delivers its information in four ways: through subscription products ranging from newsletters to annual reference works; through specific research reports, whether for general release or for particular clients; through electronic publishing; and by organising conferences and roundtables. The firm is a member of The Economist Group. London New York Hong Kong The Economist Intelligence Unit The Economist Intelligence Unit The Economist Intelligence Unit 15 Regent Street The Economist Building 25/F, Dah Sing Financial Centre London 111 West 57th Street 108 Gloucester Road SW1Y 4LR New York Wanchai United Kingdom NY 10019, US Hong Kong Tel: (44.171) 830 1000 Tel: (1.212) 554 0600 Tel: (852) 2802 7288 Fax: (44.171) 499 9767 Fax: (1.212) 586 1181/2 Fax: (852) 2802 7638 e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.eiu.com Electronic delivery EIU Electronic New York: Lou Celi or Lisa Hennessey Tel: (1.212) 554 0600 Fax: (1.212) 586 0248 London: Moya Veitch Tel: (44.171) 830 1007 Fax: (44.171) 830 1023 This publication is available on the following electronic and other media: Online databases CD-ROM Microfilm FT Profile (UK) Knight-Ridder Information World Microfilms Publications (UK) Tel: (44.171) 825 8000 Inc (US) Tel: (44.171) 266 2202 DIALOG (US) SilverPlatter (US) University Microfilms Inc (US) Tel: (1.415) 254 7000 Tel: (1.800) 521 0600 LEXIS-NEXIS (US) Tel: (1.800) 227 4908 M.A.I.D/Profound (UK) Tel: (44.171) 930 6900 Copyright © 1998 The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited. All rights reserved. Neither this publication nor any part of it may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited. All information in this report is verified to the best of the author’s and the publisher’s ability. However, the EIU does not accept responsibility for any loss arising from reliance on it. ISSN 0269-5227 Symbols for tables “n/a” means not available; “–” means not applicable Printed and distributed by Redhouse Press Ltd, Unit 151, Dartford Trade Park, Dartford, Kent DA1 1QB, UK 1 January 15th 1998 Contents 2 Basic data 3 Political background 3 Historical background 6 Constitution and institutions 7 Political forces 10 International relations and defence 13 The economy 13 Economic structure 13 Economic policy 20 Economic performance 24 Regional trends 25 Resources 25 Population 26 Education 27 Health 28 Natural resources and the environment 30 Economic infrastructure 30 Transport and communications 35 Energy provision 38 Financial services 41 Other services 43 Production 43 Industry 45 Mining and semi-processing 46 Agriculture and fishing 49 Construction 50 The external sector 50 Merchandise trade 53 Invisibles and the current account 54 Capital flows and foreign debt 57 Foreign reserves and the exchange rate 59 Appendices 59 Sources of information 61 Reference tables EIU Country Profile 1997-98 © The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited 1998 2 Egypt: Basic data Egypt Basic data Land area 997,739 sq km, of which only 4% is inhabited and cultivated territory Population 48.2m (resident; 1986 census); 59.27m (resident; 1996 census) Main urban centres Population in ’000, 1996 census (town populations only, excluding nationals abroad) Cairo (Greater Cairo estimated at 12,000) 6,789 Alexandria 3,328 Port Said 469 Suez 418 Climate Hot and dry, with mild winter Weather in Cairo (altitude Hottest month, July, 21-36°C (average daily maximum and minimum); coldest 116 metres) month, January, 8-18°C; driest months, July, August, 0 mm average rainfall; wettest month, December, 5 mm average rainfall Language Arabic Measures Metric system. Local measures are also used, especially for land area: fed- dan=0.42 ha or 1.04 acres; cereal crops: ardeb=198 litres or 5.6 US bushels; 8 ardebs=1 dariba; cotton: Egyptian bale=720 lb (325.5 kg), qantar (metric)=50 kg (replacing the traditional qantar equivalent to 44.93 kg) Currency Egyptian pound (E£)=100 piastres. End-1997 exchange rate: E£3.39:$1 Time 2 hours ahead of GMT (summer time, 3 hours ahead) EIU Country Profile 1997-98 © The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited 1998 Egypt: Historical background 3 Political background Egypt is an Arab republic with a limited democratic system, headed by the president, Hosni Mubarak, who was re-elected to his third six-year term in October 1993. The government, under the prime minister, Kamal al-Ganzouri, is supported by the majority party in parliament, the National Democratic Party. Historical background The present borders of Egypt are almost identical to those in pharaonic times, the country’s heartland being the Nile valley and the delta where Egyptian civilisation emerged over 5,000 years ago. The pharaonic era lasted for around 30 centuries, from the end of the fourth millennium BC until conquest by the Assyrians in 671 BC, but from being the paramount world power the monarchy passed into decline from the mid-13th century BC. Persian conquest followed that by the Assyrians, and then rule by Greek, Roman and Byzantine empires until, with the birth and advance of Islam in the 7th century AD, the Arab armies conquered Egypt, an invasion completed by 641 that the country’s Coptic Christian inhabitants did not oppose. Gradually the country became Arabic-speaking and Islamic, although there remained a Coptic minority. Egypt was ruled as part of the Abbasid caliphate in Baghdad, the Tunisian Fatimid empire, then by the Ayyubid dynasty and the Mameluk sultans until the Ottoman Turks conquered the country in 1517. While remaining nominally an Ottoman province, by the late 18th century Egypt had become involved in the war between Britain and France. Napoleon invaded in 1798 but by 1801 the French had surrendered to British and Otto- man forces. After a power struggle, Mohammed Ali, an Albanian officer in the Ottoman army, took control. Widely regarded as the founder of modern Egypt, Mohammed Ali opened the country up to the West. However, a nationalist coup in 1881, fed by increasing resentment at French and British control of the country, was put down by British forces, and thereafter Egyptian adminis- tration was effectively controlled by British officials even though Egypt did not formally become a British protectorate until 1914. A popular nationalist move- ment secured the country nominal independence in 1922, although Britain reserved the right to protect the Suez Canal and defend Egypt. Full inde- pendence had to wait until after the second world war when widespread anti-British strikes and riots led to the evacuation of British troops in 1947. The following year Egypt joined Iraq, Syria and Jordan in military action to protect Arab Palestine after the declaration of the state of Israel in May 1948. The conflict left the coastal Gaza Strip of Palestine under Egyptian administration. After 1952 After the revolution of 1952, when a group of young army officers sent King Farouk into exile, Gamal Abdel-Nasser quickly moved to assert his leadership of the new republic and replaced General Neguib, Egypt’s first president, in 1954. Before Nasser died in office in September 1970 his authoritarian rule had trans- formed the country through the introduction of state central planning and ownership, social welfare services, the promotion of industrial development, land redistribution, and the nationalisation of banks and companies and of the EIU Country Profile 1997-98 © The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited 1998 4 Egypt: Historical background Suez Canal Company. Egypt was the recognised leader of the Arab world, and Arab unity became the main plank of Egyptian foreign policy. Dependent on Soviet economic and military support, as the West, and the US especially, intensified its backing of Israel, Egypt under Nasser fought two major wars against Israel, in 1956 and 1967, which resulted in the loss of the Gaza Strip and Sinai. The Camp David accords Nasser was succeeded by his vice-president and fellow revolutionary, Anwar Sadat. The need to atone for the humiliating defeat in 1967 dominated Egyptian concerns, leading Mr Sadat in October 1973 to go to war against Israel in co- operation with Syria. Egypt’s military gains, an initial withdrawal by Israel from part of Sinai, brought the US into action to broker a solution. Judging that the US rather than the Soviet Union held the key to solving the Arab-Israeli conflict, Mr Sadat had already expelled all Soviet personnel from Egypt in 1972. He proceeded to renew relations with the US in 1974, after a seven-year break, and terminated Egypt’s treaty of friendship with the Soviet Union in 1976. Despite considerable Arab criticism, the president took the unprecedented step of visit- ing Israel in November 1977 to revive the peace process. This resulted in a summit meeting in the US in September 1978 and the Camp David accords. These provided the basis for the comprehensive peace treaty between Egypt and Israel signed in Washington in March 1979 which led to an Israeli withdrawal from Sinai, finally completed in April 1982. However, the second part of the accords, widening the peace process to include other Arab parties, failed to be implemented owing to Arab condemnation of Egypt’s separate peace.