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OBG introduces the reader to the different aspects of the legal system in Egypt, in partnership with Helmy, Hamza & Partners. This section includes a viewpoint from Mohamad B Talaat, Partner, Helmy, Hamza & Partners, on laying the legal groundwork for continued economic expansion.

In conjunction with Deloitte, OBG explores the taxation system, examining Egypt’s investor-friendly environment.

The Egyptian media scene continues to undergo rapid change in the two years since the start of the revolution. The media has become much more diverse, and a number of new outlets have opened across all genres. The largest media organisation in the country is the Egyptian Radio and Television Union, which has a staff of over 40,000 people and runs nine television channels and six regional television stations. Egypt’s media is likely to continue to witness rapid change, with new outlets continuing to open but perhaps not nearly as many surviving. New media and the rise of smartphones are likely to stimulate competition, but over the near term content does not look set to shift focus noticeably. A large media market in its own right, the Egyptian advertising industry is bouncing back from the events of 2011 and 2013. The country’s media has experienced a flowering as some restrictions on freedom of expression have loosened considerably, and several new media outlets, both broadcast and print, have been launched, winning market share across the Arab world. Television will continue to dominate the spending, but other media, particularly radio and outdoor ads, could see strong growth. The sector looks set to see further recovery in 2013, and the rapidly changing media environment is likely to bring forward as many opportunities as challenges.

After decades of improvements, Egypt has some of the region’s best public health indicators, and in some cases it delivers international-standard care. However, the precarious political and economic situation means that progress on reform has been patchy. With population pressures, new and old health care challenges – including rising non-communicable diseases rates and a high level of hepatitis infections – alongside a scarcity of resources, there is no doubt that the current system is stretched. With public funds limited, an increasing role for the private sector is looking likely, creating new opportunities for international participation in health financing and provision. With 20m people in some form of education, Egypt has the largest student body in the MENA region. However, after several decades of progress, the system now lags behind international standards. Due to a shortage of resources, top-heavy administration, the difficulty of recruiting good teachers and out-dated curricula, schools and universities are not producing the qualified graduates Egypt needs for economic development. Factors including patchy standards at government institutions, rising incomes among the middle classes and a growing number of jobs that require higher levels of education have seen an increase in the number of private schools in the past 20 years. This chapter contains an interview with Hossam Badrawi, Managing Director, Nile Badrawi Hospital, and Professor, Cairo University Medical School.

Agriculture directly accounts for about one-third of employment and provides income for over half of the population. Exports have risen rapidly in recent years and there is large potential for growth. The total value of exports of foodstuffs was estimated at $1.08bn in 2011/12, a decline from the $1.18bn recorded during the previous year. This will, however, require better harnessing the potential of the small-scale farmers who dominate the sector but suffer from problems like fragmentation of land use and a lack of access to market intelligence. Traditional farming is conducted largely along the Nile River at some 4m mostly small-scale farms. These operations comprise over 95% of the sector. In terms of production value, rice was the second largest crop in 2011, at $151m. Some 4.25m tonnes were produced in 2011/12.