Egypt

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Background:

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Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip

Geographic coordinates: 27 00 N, 30 00 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 1,001,450 sq km
land: 995,450 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly more than three times the size of New Mexico

Land boundaries:
total: 2,689 km
border countries: Gaza Strip 11 km, Israel 255 km, Libya 1,150 km, Sudan 1,273 km

Coastline: 2,450 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: desert; hot, dry summers with moderate winters

Terrain: vast desert plateau interrupted by Nile valley and delta

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Qattara Depression -133 m
highest point: Mount Catherine 2,629 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, zinc

Land use:
arable land: 2.92%
permanent crops: 0.5%
other: 96.58% (2005)

Irrigated land: 34,220 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards: periodic droughts; frequent earthquakes, flash floods, landslides, volcanic activity; hot, driving windstorm called khamsin occurs in spring; dust storms, sandstorms

Environment - current issues: agricultural land being lost to urbanization and windblown sands; increasing soil salination below Aswan High Dam; desertification; oil pollution threatening coral reefs, beaches, and marine habitats; other water pollution from agricultural pesticides, raw sewage, and industrial effluents; limited natural fresh water resources away from the Nile, which is the only perennial water source; rapid growth in population overstraining the Nile and natural resources

Environment - international agreements:
party to:Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note: controls Sinai Peninsula, only land bridge between Africa and remainder of Eastern Hemisphere; controls Suez Canal, a sea link between Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea; size, and juxtaposition to Israel, establish its major role in Middle Eastern geopolitics; dependence on upstream neighbors; dominance of Nile basin issues; prone to influxes of refugees

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Population: 83,082,869 (July 2009 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 31.4% (male 13,345,500/female 12,743,878)
15-64 years: 63.8% (male 26,823,127/female 26,169,421)
65 years and over: 4.8% (male 1,701,068/female 2,299,875) (2009 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.642% (2009 est.)

Birth rate: 21.7 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)

Death rate: 5.08 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2009 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 27.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 28.93 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 25.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.12 years
male: 69.56 years
female: 74.81 years (2009 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.66 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Egyptian(s)
adjective: Egyptian

Ethnic groups: Egyptian 99.6%, other 0.4% (2006 census)

Religions: Muslim (mostly Sunni) 90%, Coptic 9%, other Christian 1%

Languages: Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by educated classes

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 71.4%
male: 83%
female: 59.4% (2005 est.)

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Country name:
conventional long form: Arab Republic of Egypt
conventional short form: Egypt
local long form: Jumhuriyat Misr al-Arabiyah
local short form: Misr
former: United Arab Republic (with Syria)

Data code: EG

Government type: republic

Capital: Cairo

Administrative divisions: 26 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Ad Daqahliyah, Al Bahr al Ahmar (Red Sea), Al Buhayrah (El Beheira), Al Fayyum (El Faiyum), Al Gharbiyah, Al Iskandariyah (Alexandria), Al Isma'iliyah (Ismailia), Al Jizah (Giza), Al Minufiyah (El Monofia), Al Minya, Al Qahirah (Cairo), Al Qalyubiyah, Al Wadi al Jadid (New Valley), As Suways (Suez), Ash Sharqiyah, Aswan, Asyut, Bani Suwayf (Beni Suef), Bur Sa'id (Port Said), Dumyat (Damietta), Janub Sina' (South Sinai), Kafr ash Shaykh, Matruh (Western Desert), Qina (Qena), Shamal Sina' (North Sinai), Suhaj (Sohag)

Independence: 28 February 1922 (from UK)

National holiday: Anniversary of the Revolution, 23 July (1952)

Constitution: 11 September 1971

Legal system: based on English common law, Islamic law, and Napoleonic codes; judicial review by Supreme Court and Council of State (oversees validity of administrative decisions); accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Mohammed Hosni MUBARAK (since 14 October 1981)
head of government: Prime Minister Ahmed Mohamed NAZIF (since 9 July 2004)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections:president elected by popular vote for six-year term (no term limits); note - a national referendum in May 2005 approved a constitutional amendment that changed the presidential election to a multicandidate popular vote; previously the president was nominated by the People's Assembly and the nomination was validated by a national, popular referendum; last referendum held 26 September 1999; first election under terms of constitutional amendment held 7 September 2005; next election scheduled for 2011
election results: Hosni MUBARAK reelected president; percent of vote - Hosni MUBARAK 88.6%, Ayman NOUR 7.6%, Noman GOMAA 2.9%

Legislative branch: bicameral system consists of the Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura (Shura Council) that traditionally functions only in a consultative role but 2007 constitutional amendments could grant the Council new powers (264 seats; 176 elected by popular vote, 88 appointed by the president; members serve six-year terms; mid-term elections for half of the elected members) and the People's Assembly or Majlis al-Sha'b (454 seats; 444 elected by popular vote, 10 appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms)
elections:Advisory Council - last held June 2007 (next to be held May-June 2010); People's Assembly - three-phase voting - last held 7 and 20 November, 1 December 2005; (next to be held November-December 2010)
election results: Advisory Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NDP 84, Tagammu 1, independents 3; People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NDP 311, NWP 6, Tagammu 2, Tomorrow Party 1, independents 112 (12 seats to be determined by rerun elections, 10 seats appointed by President)

Judicial branch: Supreme Constitutional Court

Political parties and leaders:National Democratic Party or NDP (governing party) [Mohamed Hosni MUBARAK]; National Progressive Unionist Grouping or Tagammu [Rifaat EL-SAID]; New Wafd Party or NWP [Mahmoud ABAZA]; Tomorrow Party [Moussa Mustafa MOUSSA]
note: formation of political parties must be approved by government

Political pressure groups and leaders: Muslim Brotherhood (technically illegal)
note: despite a constitutional ban against religious-based parties and political activity, the technically illegal Muslim Brotherhood constitutes Hosni MUBARAK's potentially most significant political opposition; MUBARAK has alternated between tolerating limited political activity by the Brotherhood (its members, who ran as independents, hold 88 seats in the People's Assembly) and blocking its influence; civic society groups are sanctioned, but constrained in practical terms; only trade unions and professional associations affiliated with the government are officially sanctioned; Internet social networking groups and bloggers

International organization participation: ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, BSEC (observer), CAEU, COMESA, EBRD, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINURCAT, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission:Ambassador Sameh Hassan SHOUKRY
chancery: 3521 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 895-5400
FAX: [1] (202) 244-4319
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, New York, and San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Margaret SCOBEY
embassy: 8 Kamal El Din Salah St., Garden City, Cairo
mailing address: Unit 64900, Box 15, APO AE 09839-4900
telephone: [20] (2) 797-3300
FAX: [20] (2) 797-3200

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with the national emblem (a shield superimposed on a golden eagle facing the hoist side above a scroll bearing the name of the country in Arabic) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band; also similar to the flag of Syria, which has two green stars, and to the flag of Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band

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Economy - overview: Occupying the northeast corner of the African continent, Egypt is bisected by the highly fertile Nile valley, where most economic activity takes place. Egypt's economy was highly centralized during the rule of former President Gamal Abdel NASSER but has opened up considerably under former President Anwar EL-SADAT and current President Mohamed Hosni MUBARAK. Cairo has aggressively pursued economic reforms to encourage inflows of foreign investment and facilitate GDP growth. In 2005, Prime Minister Ahmed NAZIF's government reduced personal and corporate tax rates, reduced energy subsidies, and privatized several enterprises. The stock market boomed, and GDP grew about 7% each year since 2006. Despite these achievements, the government has failed to raise living standards for the average Egyptian, and has had to continue providing subsidies for basic necessities. The subsidies have contributed to a sizeable budget deficit - roughly 7% of GDP in 2007-08 - and represent a significant drain on the economy. Foreign direct investment has increased significantly in the past two years, but the NAZIF government will need to continue its aggressive pursuit of reforms in order to sustain the spike in investment and growth and begin to improve economic conditions for the broader population. Egypt's export sectors - particularly natural gas - have bright prospects.

GDP ( purchasing power parity - PPP): $444.8 billion (2008 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate): $162.6 billion (2008 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 7.2% (2008 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP): $5,800 (2008 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 13.2%
industry: 38.7%
services: 48.1% (2008 est.)

Unemployment rate: 8.7% (2008 est.)

Population below poverty line: 20% (2005 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.9 %
highest 10%: 27.6% (2005)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 18.3% (2008 est.)

Labor force: 24.6 million (2008 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 32%
industry: 17%
services: 51% (2001 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $40.22 billion
expenditures: $51.07 billion (2008 est.)

Industries: textiles, food processing, tourism, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, hydrocarbons, construction, cement, metals, light manufactures

Industrial production growth rate: 6.1% (2008 est.)

Electricity - production: 118.4 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - consumption: 104.1 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - exports: 814 million kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - imports: 251 million kWh (2007 est.)

Agriculture - products: cotton, rice, corn, wheat, beans, fruits, vegetables; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats

Oil - production: 630,600 bbl/day (2008 est.)

Oil - consumption: 697,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)

Oil - exports: 155,200 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - imports: 146,200 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - proved reserves: 3.7 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)

Natural gas - production: 48.3 billion cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 31.38 billion cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 16.92 billion cu m (2008)

Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 1.656 trillion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)

Current account balance: -$1.331 billion (2008 est.)

Exports: $29.85 billion (2008 est.)

Exports - commodities: crude oil and petroleum products, cotton, textiles, metal products, chemicals

Exports - partners: Italy 9.4%, US 7.1%, India 6.2%, Spain 6.1%, Syria 4.7%, Saudi Arabia 4.6%, Japan 4.5%, Germany 4.5% (2008)

Imports: $56.62 billion (2008 est.)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, wood products, fuels

Imports - partners: US 10.3%, China 9.9%, Italy 7.3%, Germany 6.8%, Saudi Arabia 4.9% (2008)

Reserve of foreign exchange and gold: $33.85 billion (31 December 2008 est.)

Debt - external: $32.12 billion (31 December 2008)

Currency: 1 Egyptian pound = 100 piasters

Exchange rates: Egyptian pounds (EGP) per US dollar - 5.4 (2008 est.), 5.67 (2007), 5.725 (2006), 5.78 (2005), 6.1962 (2004)

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Telephones - main lines in use: 12.011 million (2008)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 41.272 million (2008)

Telephone system:
general assessment:large system; underwent extensive upgrading during 1990s and is reasonably modern; Telecom Egypt, the landline monopoly, has been increasing service availability and in 2008 fixed-line density stood at 15 per 100 persons; as of 2008 there were three mobile-cellular networks with a total of more than 41 million subscribers, roughly 50 per 100 persons
domestic: principal centers at Alexandria, Cairo, Al Mansurah, Ismailia, Suez, and Tanta are connected by coaxial cable and microwave radio relay
international: country code - 20; landing point for both the SEA-ME-WE-3 and SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cable networks; linked to the international submarine cable FLAG (Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe); satellite earth stations - 4 (2 Intelsat - Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean, 1 Arabsat, and 1 Inmarsat); tropospheric scatter to Sudan; microwave radio relay to Israel; a participant in Medarabtel (2008)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 42 (plus 15 repeater stations), FM 14, shortwave 3 (1999)

Television broadcast stations: 98 (September 1995)

Internet country code: .eg

Internet hosts: 177,443 (2009)

Internet users: 11.414 million (2008)

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Railways:
total: 5,063 km
standard gauge: 5,063 km 1.435-m gauge (62 km electrified) (2008)

Roadways:
total: 92,370 km
paved: 74,820 km
unpaved: 17,550 km (2004)

Waterways: 3,500 km
note: includes Nile River, Lake Nasser, Alexandria-Cairo Waterway, and numerous smaller canals in delta; Suez Canal (193.5 km including approaches) navigable by oceangoing vessels drawing up to 17.68 m (2007)

Pipelines: condensate 320 km; condensate/gas 13 km; gas 5,586 km; liquid petroleum gas 956 km; oil 4,314 km; oil/gas/water 3 km; refined products 895 km; unknown 59 km; water 9 km (2008)

Ports and harbors: Ayn Sukhnah, Alexandria, Damietta, El Dekheila, Sidi Kurayr, Suez

Merchant marine:
total: 67 ships
ships by type: bulk carrier 11, cargo 28, container 2, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 13, roll on/roll off 9
foreign-owned: 10 (Denmark 1, Greece 8, Lebanon 1)
registered in other countries: 58 (Cambodia 13, Georgia 12, Honduras 3, North Korea 1, Malta 1, Moldova 1, Panama 17, Saint Kitts and Nevis 2, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3, Saudi Arabia 1, Sierra Leone 3, Togo 1) (2008)

Airports: 85 (2009)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 72
over 3,047 m: 15
2,438 to 3,047 m: 35
1,524 to 2,437 m: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 5 (2009)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 13
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 4 (2009)

Heliports: 6 (2009)

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Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Command

Military service age and obligation: 18-30 years of age for male conscript military service; service obligation 12-36 months, followed by a 9-year reserve obligation (2008)

Military manpower - availability:
males age 16-49: 21,247,777
females age 16-49: 14,764,176

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 21,247,777
females age 16-49: 17,719,905 (2009 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
male: 831,157
female: 792,330 (2009 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 3.4% (2005 est.)

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Disputes - international: while Sudan retains claim to the Hala'ib Triangle north of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd Parallel, both states withdrew their military presence in the 1990s and Egypt has invested in and effectively administers the area; Egypt no longer shows its administration of the Bir Tawil trapezoid in Sudan on its maps; Gazan breaches in the security wall with Egypt in January 2008 highlight difficulties in monitoring the Sinai border

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 60,000 - 80,000 (Iraq); 70,198 (Palestinian Territories); 12,157 (Sudan) (2007)

Trafficking in persons:
current situation: Egypt is a transit country for women trafficked from Eastern European countries to Israel for sexual exploitation, and is a source for children trafficked within the country for commercial sexual exploitation and domestic servitude, although the extent to which children are trafficked internally is unknown; children were also recruited for domestic and agricultural work; some of these children face conditions of involuntary servitude, such as restrictions on movement, non-payment of wages, threats, and physical or sexual abuse
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Egypt is on the Tier 2 Watch List for the third year in a row because it did not provide evidence of increasing efforts to investigate and prosecute traffickers; however, in July 2007, the government established the "National Coordinating Committee to Combat and Prevent Trafficking in Persons," which improved inter-governmental coordination on anti-trafficking initiatives; Egypt made no discernible efforts to punish trafficking crimes in 2007 and the Egyptian penal code does not prohibit all forms of trafficking; Egypt did not increase its services to trafficking victims during the reporting period (2008)

Illicit drugs: transit point for cannabis, heroin, and opium moving to Europe, Israel, and North Africa; transit stop for Nigerian drug couriers; concern as money laundering site due to lax enforcement of financial regulations

See also: Human Rights in the Arab/Islamic World
The Jews of Egypt
Potential Threats To Israel: Egypt
Relations With Egypt

Source: CIA World Fact Book 2009