3 Nations on the Road to
Modernization
Today’s Nation: Egypt
Egypt - The Basics
 Slightly more than 3x size of N. Mexico
 77 million people –
– Most populous nation in the “MidEast”
– 2nd most populous in Africa
 Currency – Egyptian Pound (EGP)
 Internet country code
– .eg
History
 Egyptian history dates back to about the
4th century
 Conquered by the Arabs in the 7th c.
 Was part of the Ottoman empire from
about 1500 to about 1800
 British controlled from 1882 to 1922
 Monarchy until military/socialist
revolution brings Nasser to power in
1954
 “Revolution” brings change in 2011-12
The Land
 99% of the population lives on about 4% of
the land
– Near the Nile Valley
– About 40% are still farmers
 Egypt controls both the Sinai Peninsula and
the Suez Canal
– Vital crossing points for travelers/traders
The People
Sunni Muslim (95%)
– Some Orthodox and Roman Catholic
Christians
Ethnicity
– Eastern Hamitic stock (Egyptians, Bedouins,
and Berbers) 99%
Primarily speak Arabic language
Cairo
Capital of Egypt
– Considered the home of the Great Pyramids of
Giza
Population: over 16 million
– About 12% of Egypt’s population
Cairo
Egypt Since Independence
(1952)
Controlled by 3 leaders
–
–
–
–
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Anwar Sadat
Hosni Mubarak
**The military, and the first democratically
elected president for a short time
Each made a contribution to Egypt’s post-
independence history…
Abdel Nasser
(1954 – 1970)
 President of Egypt after independence
– Increased power of government by seizing industries
– Took control of the Suez Canal back from Britain
– Built the Aswan High Dam with funds from US and
USSR
• Benefits (irrigation, control Nile, hydroelectric power
• Costs (fertile soil no longer carried by Nile, reduced river life
and coastal erosion)
 Goal was to expand agricultural output and end
foreign dependence
Anwar Sadat
(1970 – 1981)
– Nasser had trouble convincing foreign nations
to invest in Egypt
• They were suspicious of his socialist policies, and
feared they would lose money
Anwar Sadat was his successor
**First to make peace with Israel
– Had an “open-door” economic policy
• Welcomed foreign investment
– Assassinated in 1981 by Muslim extremists who
opposed his ties with west and peace with Israel
Hosni Mubarak
(1981-2011)
 Egypt’s next president
– Attempted to balance the needs of large population
with need to pay off foreign debt
 Cut social programs; Islamist groups (Muslim
Brotherhood) begin to help the poor; win support
– Some Muslim extremists used terrorism to fight
Mubarak’s regime
 Foreign policy- supports peace with Israel but
remains close with Arab neighbors
– Receives a great deal of aid from US during this time
– Tough balancing act, since many of his people do not
like the US influence in Egyptian affairs
Modern Politics and Challenges
The Lotus Revolution
2011
 A series of events in
2011 that swept Mubarak
out of power after 30
years, and brought in
both democracy and
military rule.
– Lotus is known as the
flower representing
resurrection, life and the
sun of ancient Egypt.
The country has been somewhat unstable since then, with
elected leaders being overthrown/replaced, and military rule
attempting to bring peace and order to the country
The Lotus Revolution (part of
the “Arab Spring”)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/r
evolution-in-cairo/
The Lotus Revolution (part of
the “Arab Spring”)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/f
oreign-affairs-defense/egypt-incrisis/timeline-whats-happened-sinceegypts-revolution/