III. Egypt Today

A. Suez Canal Suez Canal – Links the Red Sea with the Mediterranean Sea Expensive project that put Egypt in great debt Very beneficial to Egypt’s economy today

Part of Suez Canal

B. Controlling the Nile Aswan High Dam – Opened in 1971, to control the flooding of the Nile River Gives farmers a dependable water supply Allows farmers to farm all year round and harvest 3 to 4 crops a year

Want to go Swimming?

River no longer floods and leaves behind deposits of rich soil Forces farmers to use fertilizer that pollutes the water Tradeoff – An exchange of one benefit for another

C. Search for Peace Egypt became the first Arab state to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979 Muslim Brotherhood – Group that wants Egypt to be ruled by Islamic law

D. Land and People Egypt is the largest populated country in the region – 70 million people 99% - Of Egypt’s population live along the Nile delta Delta – Land formed from the soil deposited at the mouth of a river Fellahin – Peasant farmers that make up most of Egypt’s population

Cotton Farming in Egypt

E. Cairo Cairo – Africa’s largest city and the capital of Egypt Home to more than 12 million people Is very overcrowded and polluted Has one of the highest birthrates in the world Population doubles every 31 years