Egypt

Last updated: July 2nd, 2021

The Arab Republic of Egypt lies at the crossroads between Africa, Asia, and Europe. The capital is Cairo, whose metropolitan area has a population of 21 million, making it the largest city in the Arab world. The country has a total of around 104 million inhabitants growing at about two million people every year. With an area of one million square kilometers, Egypt is around three times larger than Germany. However, only about four percent of the area can be used for agriculture. In the fertile Nile Delta, cotton, rice, sugar cane, wheat, vegetables, and fruit are mainly grown.

In 2011, Egypt was one of the centers of the political upheavals in the Arab world. In 2014, Abdel Fattah El Sisi was elected president. In recent years, he has drawn attention to the economic situation in Egypt, especially with several mega projects. The Suez Canal was expanded to include a second lane, the construction of a new administrative capital in the desert east of Cairo was promoted, and the idea of ​​utilizing around 6,300 square kilometers of desert soil for agricultural purposes was revived. The New Administrative Capital has been home to the Middle East’s largest Christian cathedral since January 2019.
In 1945, Egypt was a founding member of the UN and the Arab League and it is a member of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the Greater Arab Free Trade Area (GAFTA). In addition, Egypt is a party to the Agadir Free Trade Agreement with Morocco, Tunisia, and Jordan. There has also been an association agreement with the European Union since 2004.

Egypt is the most industrialized country in North Africa. The main products that Egypt exports to Germany are crude oil, food, and textiles. Since the late 1990s, Egyptian exports to Germany have increased at an annual rate of 5.95 percent. German exports to Egypt comprise mainly machines, motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts, as well as pharmaceutical and electronic products. The tourism sector plays a vital role for the Egyptian economy adding about four percent to the GDP (2019) and employing 3.4 million people directly and indirectly.

The renewable energies industry has been experiencing an upswing since September 2014. Egypt’s topography offers the best conditions for the use of wind and solar power. A new strategic energy partnership has existed with the EU since April 2018, which includes technology transfer in the oil and gas sector and is intended to contribute to the increased use of renewable energies. The country also has a number of economically viable raw materials such as iron ore, phosphate, gypsum, gold, and marble.