Arab Republic of Egypt
A state in the northeastern part of Africa and the Sinai Peninsula in Asia. Area - 1,001.4 thousand km². Capital - Cairo (18 million), largest cities: Alexandria, Port Said, Mansoura. Administrative division - 27 governorates (muhafaz). Population - 74 million (2004). 3.5 million Egyptians live abroad, 98% of the population are Arabs. The official language is Arabic. Religion - Islam, the overwhelming majority of the population are Sunni Muslims. Currency - Egyptian pound = 100 piastres.
It has diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation (established with the USSR on August 26, 1943).
National holiday - July 23 - Revolution Day (1952).
Egypt is a republic. The current constitution was adopted on September 11, 1971, with major amendments made during the referendum on May 22, 1980. The head of state is the president (since 2005, the head of state is elected on a direct alternative basis). In 1981, Hosni Mubarak was elected to this position and re-elected in September 2005 for a fifth term (6-year period). The highest legislative body is the unicameral People's Assembly (parliament), elected for a term of 5 years. The last elections were held at the end of 2005 (454 deputies: 444 are elected in general elections, 10 are appointed by the president). The highest state authorities also include the Consultative Council, consisting of 258 deputies (2/3 are elected by universal direct secret ballot, and appointed by the president).
According to the 1971 constitution, executive power belongs to the head of state - the president, who, together with the appointed Council of Ministers, develops the general policy of the state and controls its implementation. The Prime Minister is Ahmed Nazif (since July 2004).
The ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) was founded in 1978. Chairman - H. Mubarak, General Secretary - S. Sherif. The NDP has an absolute majority of seats in parliament and has an extensive network of organizations at the local level. There are also 17 other political parties legally operating in the country, including: the Socialist Labor Party, the Liberal Socialist Party, the National Progressive (Left) Party, "Al-Umma," the New "Wafd," the Nasserist Democratic Arab Party, and others.
Trade unions are united in the Egyptian Federation of Labor (established in 1957, includes 23 sectoral trade unions, with about 4.5 million members).
Egypt is the cradle of one of the first civilizations in human history - Ancient Egypt (4th millennium BC - mid-4th century BC).
The rulers of this state conducted military campaigns. Egypt itself has repeatedly been subjected to invasions by the Assyrians, Persians, and others. In 332 BC, it was conquered by Alexander the Great. The capital he founded - Alexandria - became one of the largest centers of the Hellenistic world. In 31 BC, Egypt was incorporated into the Roman Empire, and in 395 AD it became a province of its eastern part - Byzantium.
In the mid-7th century, it was conquered by Arab Muslims and became part of the Arab Caliphate, leading to the Arabization and Islamization of the country. For a long time (since 1517), it was part of the Ottoman Empire.
In 1882, Egypt was occupied by the British, and in 1914 it was officially declared a British protectorate. The national liberation movement that unfolded after World War I forced Britain to agree in 1922 to proclaim Egypt's independence (as a kingdom). At the same time, it retained its influence over the formation of the foreign and domestic political course of the Egyptian king and his government, and had its troops in the Suez Canal zone. The situation changed after the rise to power in Egypt on July 23, 1952, of the organization of radical military "Free Officers" led by Gamal Abdel Nasser. On June 18, 1953,
Egypt was proclaimed a republic. The republican government took a number of measures to strengthen the country's sovereignty and accelerate its economic development. In July 1956, President Nasser decided to nationalize the Suez Canal. This decision found broad support in the country, which helped Egypt assert its right to control the canal, despite opposition from several states, which culminated in the fall of that year in an armed conflict between Egyptian forces and the forces of Britain, France, and Israel. Egyptian leaders repeatedly noted the important role of the USSR in supporting Egypt during these events.
In February 1958, Egypt and Syria united into one state - the United Arab Republic (UAR). In September 1961, Syria withdrew from the UAR. Since September 1971, Egypt has been called the Arab Republic of Egypt (ARE).
In the 1960s, during the presidency of G. A. Nasser, socio-economic reforms were carried out in Egypt. Through the nationalization of banks, a large number of large and medium-sized trade and industrial companies, as well as extensive construction of new enterprises, a powerful state sector of the economy was created. In the 1970s, under President A. Sadat, a course was initiated to develop market relations, the private sector of the economy, increase the volume of goods produced in the country, primarily consumer goods, various services, and attract foreign investments.
For a long time, a pressing issue for Egypt was the return of territories occupied by Israel during the "Six-Day War" of 1967 (the Sinai Peninsula). In October 1973, the Egyptian army crossed the Suez Canal and landed on its eastern shore. Soon, a ceasefire protocol was signed between Egypt and Israel, and in January 1974, an agreement on the disengagement of forces was reached. In November 1977, A. Sadat visited Jerusalem. Egyptian-Israeli bilateral contacts, mediated by the USA, led to the signing of agreements in Camp David (USA) in September 1978, based on which a peace treaty was concluded on March 26, 1979, under which Israel returned the territory it had occupied to the ARE.
This action at that time led to serious complications in Egypt's relations with many Arab countries. Its membership in the League of Arab States (LAS) and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was suspended (in 1979). On October 6, 1981, Sadat was assassinated. The new Egyptian president, H. Mubarak, adopted a flexible policy on the international stage and within the country. He managed to overcome the isolation of the ARE in the Arab world. In 1984, the membership of the ARE in the OIC was restored, and in 1989 - in the LAS. The headquarters of this organization was returned from Tunisia to Cairo.
President H. Mubarak proposed turning the Middle East into a zone free from all types of weapons of mass destruction. Egyptian diplomacy is actively working to promote the peace process in the region and to unblock the Arab-Israeli conflict. Egypt is a member of the UN (since 1945) and the AU (since 1963). In recent years, the Egyptian leadership has been implementing a series of reforms aimed at accelerating the country's development towards the formation of modern market relations.
GDP in 2004 amounted to 253 billion Egyptian pounds (73 billion dollars), of which 70% was accounted for by the private sector. The share of agriculture in GDP is 16%, industry - over 21%. The area of arable land is about 5% of the territory of the ARE. Agricultural production meets the population's needs for basic food products by 40%. Production of major types of agricultural products (million tons, 1998): wheat - 6.2; corn - 5.9; rice - 5.1; raw cotton - 0.9; meat - 0.6. Egypt ranks first in the world in the production of high-quality long-staple cotton. In 1997, the "New Valley" project was launched, which involves the irrigation of 1.4 million hectares of land in the Western Desert.
The leading industries are oil extraction, oil refining, food, textile, and metallurgy.
Mineral resources extracted include oil, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, mineral salts, and manganese. In 2004, 93 billion kWh of electricity, 184 thousand tons of aluminum, 29 million tons of cement, and 4.4 million tons of ferrous metallurgy products were produced, as well as fertilizers: phosphates - 1.5 million tons, nitrogen - 10.4 million tons, oil - 32 million tons, gas - 34 million m³.
Trade turnover in 2004 was 28.5 billion dollars, including exports - 10.5 billion dollars, imports - 18 billion dollars.
The country has 14 universities. The largest of them are: Cairo University, Ain Shams University, Alexandria University, and the Muslim University of Al-Azhar. More than 700 thousand students are enrolled in higher education institutions.
Egypt publishes over 300 various periodicals, including 17 daily newspapers; the largest of them are: "Al-Ahram" (circulation about 900 thousand), "Al-Akhbar" (about 800 thousand), "Al-Gomhouria" (650 thousand), "Mayo" (500 thousand).
Egyptian television and radio broadcasting are among the most developed in the Middle East region. The official news agency of the ARE is the Middle East News Agency (MENA).