Independent since 1922, Egypt is a North African country overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. It borders with the Gaza Strip to the north, Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south, and Libya to the west. The population is estimated to be 107 million and the official language is Arabic.
Egypt has always enjoyed a strategic position at the crossroads of Europe, Africa and Asia. The country lies between the Mediterranean Sea, which provides a route to Europe and North America, and – thanks to the Suez Canal – the Red Sea, which continues on to the Indian Ocean. Today, this makes Egypt one of the most important international trade hotspots in the world. Additionally, the great availability of natural resources, recently strengthened by the discovery of the Zohr offshore gas fields, makes Egypt a key country within the geopolitical dynamics of the Near East and North Africa.
In 2021, the trade between Rome and Cairo reached $ 6,11 billion. Overall, in 2021 Italy has been Egypt’s first trading european partner.
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Head of state | Abdel Fattah al-Sisi |
Head of Government | Mostafa Madbouly |
Institutional Form | Semi-presidential Republic |
Capital | Cairo |
Legislative Power | Unicameral House of Representatives (Majlis Al-Nowaab, 596 members). With the 2019 constitutional amendments to the 2014 Constitution, the second House of Parliament arose again as the “Senate” (180 members) |
Judicial Power | Supreme Constitutional Court (one President and 10 judges); Court of Cassation (more than 450 judges organised in other courts, each of which is composed of panels of at least 5 jurists judges) |
Ambassador to Italy | Bassam Essam Rady Abdelhamid Rady |
Total Area kmq | 1.001.450 km2 |
Land | 995.450 km2 |
Weather | Desert; hot, dry summers with moderate winters |
Natural resources | Oil, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, rare earths, zinc |
Economic summary | The country is divided by the fertile Nile Valley, where most economic activity takes place. However, the unemployment and high inflation limit the economic growth of Egypt. The most important economic resource is the agriculture, which employs about 23% of the working population. Despite efforts at economic diversification, Egypt continues to depend on the Suez Canal for much of its foreign income |
GDP | € 300.8 billion (2023) |
Pro-capite GDP (Purchasing power parity) | $4086 (Dec. 2021) |
Exports | € 32.6 billion (2023) |
Export partner | UAE 9.57%, Saudi Arabia 6.21%, Türkiye 5.85%, Italy 5.82%, India 4.38% (2020) |
Imports | € 63.6 billion (2023) |
Import partner | China 17.4%, Russia 6.72%, UAE 4.83%, Saudi Arabia 4.7%, Türkiye 4.34%, Italy 3.9% (2020) |
Trade With Italy | € 5.960 billion (2023) |
Population | 107.770.524 (2022 est.) |
Population Growth | +1,68% (2022 est.) |
Ethnicities | Egyptians 95%, others 5% |
Languages | Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by the educated classes |
Religions | Muslims (predominantly Sunni) 90%, Christians (majority Coptic Orthodox, other Christians include Apostolic Armenians, Catholics, Maronites, Orthodox and Anglicans) 10% |
Urbanization | 43% |
Literacy | 71.2% |
Independent since 1922, Egypt is a North African country overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. It borders with the Gaza Strip to the north, Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south, and Libya to the west. The population is estimated to be 107 million and the official language is Arabic.
Egypt has always enjoyed a strategic position at the crossroads of Europe, Africa and Asia. The country lies between the Mediterranean Sea, which provides a route to Europe and North America, and – thanks to the Suez Canal – the Red Sea, which continues on to the Indian Ocean. Today, this makes Egypt one of the most important international trade hotspots in the world. Additionally, the great availability of natural resources, recently strengthened by the discovery of the Zohr offshore gas fields, makes Egypt a key country within the geopolitical dynamics of the Near East and North Africa.
In 2021, the trade between Rome and Cairo reached $ 6,11 billion. Overall, in 2021 Italy has been Egypt’s first trading european partner.