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Politics

Presidency and parliament

Although Egypt is a republic, it is a circumscribed democracy. Multi-political presidential elections were only recently introduced, in 2005, and competition is still limited to this day. The current political system is led and dominated by its president, Hosni Mubarak, who is vested with the most decision-making authority in the country. The People's Assembly (the lower house of parliament) approves policy.

Succession and opposition

Succession is central to Egyptian politics; no successor has yet been named for the 78- year-old President Mubarak, whose health is said to be ailing (although many believe he is a born survivor, having lived through no less than six assassination attempts). The most likely successor is the president’s son, Gamal Mubarak. Several opposition parties do exist, but in practice they represent little competition for the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP), in part due to the intimidation any opposition faces from state security forces.

Muslim Brotherhood

Egypt’s most viable and controversial opposition group is the Muslim Brotherhood, a socio-religious organisation which is officially illegal. Political analysts believe that the constitutional amendments that were passed in a referendum in March 2007 are likely to be used to prevent the banned but tolerated Muslim Brotherhood from gaining any further political ground and limit their influence in the country wherever possible. While the relationship between the Muslim Brotherhood and the presidency is a complex and strained one, there is overall political stability in the country at the current time.

Influence of the media

Egypt’s press is one of the most influential and widely-read in the Middle East. Its TV and film industry serves most of the Arab-speaking world with shows from its Media Production City, which has been dubbed the "Hollywood of the East". Media criticism of the government is common, however there are still laws in place that will imprison those who libel the president or foreign heads of state.

Stability leads to reforms

Given Egypt’s political stability, its government is keen to make the reforms necessary to increase the level of foreign investment it receives. With this in mind, it has streamlined its purchase process to make it easier for overseas buyers, and introduced a series of reforms to customs, income and corporate tax, as well as privatising a number of industries and working to increase currency liquidity. Various tax advantages for overseas buyers also help to make Egypt an appealing option for investors.

Related items

Documents and Reports

	Egypt property investment report (392Kb)
Documents and Reports

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