EGYPT DESCENDANTS OF THE NILE

The annual flooding of the Nile River has imbued the land of Egypt with some of the richest soils on Earth. From this sprang forth one of the world’s great civilisations, which held sway across North Africa and beyond for millennia afterward.

- ONG XIANG HONG

Today, most economic activity still takes place by the highly fertile Nile valley. Egypt’s capital, Cairo is located within the Nile Delta, though it was founded centuries after the pharaohs last reigned. The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake Nasser have reaffirmed the time-honoured place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt.

The great majority of Egyptians live near the banks of the Nile, where the only arable land in the region is found. Egypt is the most populous country in North Africa and the Arab world, and is considered a major power in the region both economically and culturally.

Though Egypt’s economy has suffered a severe blow after the 2011 revolution which toppled longtime president Hosni Mubarak, a series of measures to reform the moribund economy has been undertaken, including floating the Egyptian pound and encouraging foreign direct investment.

Foreign firms are aiding economic diversification, improving the quality of human capital through better managerial and technical skills, increasing employment opportunities and assisting the transfer of technologies. Leading petroleum firms are helping the government to exploit its rich oil and gas endowment and generating budget revenue.

Sectors seen by the Egyptian government to be of particular focus for foreign investors in the short to medium term include energy, construction and real estate, transportation, and telecommunications.