Egypt
Regarding the Gaza conflict, Egypt has maintained its balanced stance since the beginning. On one hand, Cairo continues to play a crucial role in facilitating negotiations between Hamas and Israel, hosting talks between the parties. On the other hand, President Al-Sisi is actively working to minimize the negative impacts of the ongoing conflict. This balanced approach has remained steadfast despite the early June crisis when two Egyptian soldiers were killed at the Rafah crossing during the onset of the Israeli offensive on the last Hamas enclave in the Strip. Tensions were promptly defused by both sides, who announced a joint investigation to determine the facts, thereby limiting the risk of escalation. In this context, and despite limited diplomatic progress in the Hamas-Israel conflict, Cairo has remained fully focused on delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza. The Egyptian Air Force, in collaboration with the United Arab Emirates Air Force, has maintained an airlift to Gaza, which has become even more crucial for delivering aid after the closure of land borders at the crossing. These borders were temporarily reopened thanks to Cairo's diplomatic efforts for children needing medical care.
As widely anticipated, the onset of summer has put pressure on the Egyptian economy. Heatwaves have caused several blackouts, which have become increasingly frequent and prolonged in the country's major urban centers. In an extraordinary press conference broadcast on national television, Prime Minister Madbouly officially apologized for the inconveniences caused by power outages, reassuring the public that the government has a plan to resolve the energy emergency by the third week of July. Madbouly also promised investments of 1.18 billion dollars to improve the efficiency of the electrical grid. Meanwhile, despite the government's reassurances, the Prime Minister's office issued an ordinance that halves the opening hours of shops and shopping centers. This measure, presented as purely precautionary, highlights the country's ongoing energy challenges. Additionally, there are growing concerns about the impact of rising temperatures on the cost of living. Despite a new decrease in inflation in May, Cairo authorities fear that the summer period, with its associated energy consumption, could lead to a new rise in inflation. The month concluded with the signing of new economic agreements between Italy and Egypt. The total value of the agreements signed between Egypt and Italian companies is close to one billion euros (920 million to be exact). These agreements are part of the new strategic partnership launched by Brussels and Cairo last March and the Italian government's Mattei Plan for new relations between Africa and Italy. The agreements cover a wide range of sectors, from sustainable mobility to financial guarantees for Italian exports.
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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.
