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Official Name: Known as The Arab Republic of Egypt (locally known as Jumhuriyat Misr al-Arabiyah).
Capital: The capital of Egypt is Cairo. Cairo is the largest and most populated city in the Middle East and Africa and lies at the center of all routes that leads to and from Asia, Africa, and Europe. There were settlements in what is known as Cairo dating back some 6000 years. The official date of Cairo is 969 A.D. when Muslim invaders arrived and enlarged the site.
Location: Egypt is located in Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea North of Sudan, and includes the Asian Peninsula.
Size: The total land and water area of Egypt is 1,001,450 square kilometers (386,660 sq mi). The total land area is 995,450 sq km and the total water area is 6,000 sq km. Placing Egypt as the 37th largest country in the world. Egypt is bigger than Tanzania and slightly smaller than Mauritania. Egypt is the same size as all of Central America, Twice the size of Spain, and four times the size of England.
Climate: Apart from the Nile Valley, the majority of Egypt's landscape is a desert. Egypt has only two seasons: a mild winter from November to April and a hot summer from May to October. The temperatures in the coastal regions range from 14 degrees Celsius in winter to 30 degrees Celsius in the summer. Temperatures in the inland desert areas range from 7 degrees Celsius at night to a hot 43 degrees Celsius during the day. Egypt receives very little precipitation annually. Between 80 to 200 millimeters of precipitation falling mostly in the coastal regions. Inland such as Cairo receives only a little more than 1 centimeter of precipitation each year.
Population: Egypt has a gross population of approximately 83,082,869 million people and the country ranks at 16 th place worldwide. Putting Egypt between Germany and Ethiopia respectively. Egypt is the most populated country in the Middle East and the third most populated country in Africa. Almost all the population is concentrated along the banks of the Nile, in the Delta, and near the Suez Canal (99% of the population uses about 5.5% of the total land area).
Life expectancy at birth: The total average life expectancy at birth for Egypt is 72.12 years. The life expectancy for males is 69.56 years from birth, while females are at an average of 74.81 years. Egypt is ranked at 120th worldwide for life expectancy putting it between Brazil and Latvia.
Prevalence of HIV/AIDS: The prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Egypt is less than 0.1%. This ranks Egypt at 162 worldwide. Egypt is between Comoros and the Czech Republic. HIV/AIDS prevalence in Egypt is low.
Major Illnesses: The risk of a major infectious illness in Egypt is moderate. There are confirmed human cases of the H1N1 virus also known as the Swine Flu in Egypt, including one reported death. The World Health Organization (WHO) pandemic threat alert has been raised to level 6. There are confirmed human cases of the Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) H5N1 in Egypt. There have been 27 fatalities believed to have arisen from close contact with infected poultry. Several vaccinations are highly recommended for travelers journeying to the country, they include: Yellow Fever, Typhoid fever, Hepatitis A and B, Hepatitis C is the highest prevalence in the world, Cholera, West Nile fever, Rift Valley fever, and Diphtheria.
Ethnic Groups: Egyptians are by far the largest ethnic group in Egypt at 99.6% of the total population. Fewer than 0.4% are classified as "other" which consists of: Bedouin Arabs, Berber-speaking Siwis, Dom clan, Faiyum, and the ancient Nubian communities clustered along the Nile.
Languages: There are many languages spoken in Egypt, but Egyptian Arabic (Masri) is the official language. English and French is widely understood by the educated classes. In the Upper Nile Valley there are about 300,000 speakers of the Nubian language. There are also many who speak Greek in and around Alexandria.
Religion:Egypt is a predominantly Muslim (Sunni) country comprising about 90% of the population and 10% of the population are Christians.. Most of the non-Muslims in the country are Christians belonging to the native Coptic Orthodox Church.
Government: Egypt is a republic, which means the people's elected deputies (representatives), not the people themselves, vote on legislation. The administrative branch works out of 26 provinces; Ad Daqahliyah, Al Bahr al Ahmar, Al Buhayrah, Al Fayyum, Al Gharbiyah, Al Iskandariyah, Al Isma'iliyah, Al Jizah, Al Minufiyah, Al Minya, Al Qahirah, Al Qalyubiyah, Al Wadi al Jadid, Ash Sharqiyah, As Suways, Aswan, Asyut, Bani Suwayf, Bur Sa'id, Dumyat, Janub Sina', Kafr ash Shaykh, Matruh, Qina, Shamal Sina', Suhaj. Egypt does not enjoy a democratic society in the Western sense. There were several local and international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and the Human Rights Watch, that have been condemning Egypt's human rights record as poor. there have been many human rights violations such as, torture, Detentions, discriminating personal status laws governing marriage and custody, and freedom of the press.
Head of State: The Head of State in Egypt is President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak (since 14 October 1981). The President of Egypt is both Head of state and the Head of Government. President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak who is the leader of the ruling National Democratic Party is currently serving his fifth term in office.
Head of Government: The Head of Government in Egypt is Prime Minister Ahmed Mohamed Nazif.
Military: The Egyptian Armed Forces consist of: Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Command. The Armed Forces of Egypt are the largest in Africa and ranked 11th worldwide. The paramilitary forces of Egypt numbers around 405,000. Military service age and obligation is 18-30 years of age for males with a 12-36 months of obligation, followed by a 9-year reserve obligation.
Economy: Egypt has been a major influence world wide due to its strategic geographical position which connects the continent of Africa to the Middle East, Asia and Europe, Its population size, Rich culture, technology, and wealth, has caused Egypt to attracted many conquerors. In the past three thousand years Egypt has been ruled by the; the Kushites, Libyans, Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Christians, Arabs, Turks, French, and English. After gaining its independence in June 18, 1953, Egypt's economy was highly centralized. The country's economy has opened up considerably under former president Anwar El-Sadat and the current president Mohamed Hosni Mubarak.
GDP: Egypt has had a very strong economic growth in recent years, a situation that continues even as of 2008. The purchasing power parity of Egypt is US$ 442.6 billion. This gives the country a ranking of 28th worldwide, putting Egypt between Colombia and Pakistan. Egypt's official growth rate has been at 6.9% ranking the country high at 35 worldwide (above Uganda and slightly below Lebanon).
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