EGYPT
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General Information
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General Information
Complicated country and travelling overland from Sudan meeting the corrupt officials makes you think twice if you are welcome as a foreigner/tourist. It is amazing how the government allows border officials to be so corrupt while everyone is aware of the various schemes. (same in the Port of Alexandria) Some say Egypt is the cradle of civilisation. Islam is the official religion and Arabic is the official language. Majority of its population lives around the banks of the Nile river, Cairo and Alexandria. Over the last 30 years terrorist attacks have been severe and numerous. Various groups like Al Gama Al Islamiyah, Muslim Brotherhood and Al Quaida have targeted Government officials, tourists and Christian Copts. This has done lots of damage to the Egypt economy, the largest being tourism. This has devastated the livelihoods of many Egyptians. Other major income earners are coal, natural gas, oil and hydro power. The Suez Canal is another money maker with an average of 50 ships passing daily. With the new Suez Canal bypass this will increase to nearly 100 ships per day. The estimated income will be around 13.5 billion dollars by 2023, however, there are doubts as the growth of 10% estimated has been less than 4% sofar. Another threat is the opening of the Northern Sea Route between Europe and East Asia (due to shrinking ice) making the journey a lot faster and saving 4000 nautical miles compared by taking the Suez Canal.