| Country name | conventional long form: Arab Republic of Egypt conventional short form: Egypt local long form: Jumhuriyat Misr al-Arabiyah local short form: Misr former: United Arab Republic (with Syria) etymology: the English name "Egypt" derives from the ancient Greek name for the country "Aigyptos"; the Arabic name "Misr" can be traced to the ancient Akkadian "misru" meaning border or frontier |
| Government type | presidential republic |
| Capital | name: Cairo geographic coordinates: 30 03 N, 31 15 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: from the Arabic "al-Qahira," meaning "the victorious" |
| Administrative divisions | 27 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazat); Ad Daqahliyah, Al Bahr al Ahmar (Red Sea), Al Buhayrah, Al Fayyum, Al Gharbiyah, Al Iskandariyah (Alexandria), Al Isma'iliyah (Ismailia), Al Jizah (Giza), Al Minufiyah, Al Minya, Al Qahirah (Cairo), Al Qalyubiyah, Al Uqsur (Luxor), Al Wadi al Jadid (New Valley), As Suways (Suez), Ash Sharqiyah, Aswan, Asyut, Bani Suwayf, Bur Sa'id (Port Said), Dumyat (Damietta), Janub Sina' (South Sinai), Kafr ash Shaykh, Matruh, Qina, Shamal Sina' (North Sinai), Suhaj |
| Independence | 28 February 1922 (from UK protectorate status; the military-led revolution that began on 23 July 1952 led to a republic being declared on 18 June 1953 and all British troops withdrawn on 18 June 1956); note - it was ca. 3200 B.C. that the Two Lands of Upper (southern) and Lower (northern) Egypt were first united politically |
| National holiday | Revolution Day, 23 July (1952) |
| Constitution | history: several previous; latest approved by a constitutional committee in December 2013, approved by referendum held on 14-15 January 2014, ratified by interim president on 19 January 2014 amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or by one fifth of the House of Representatives members; a decision to accept the proposal requires majority vote by House members; passage of amendment requires a two-thirds majority vote by House members and passage by majority vote in a referendum; articles of reelection of the president and principles of freedom are not amendable unless the amendment "brings more guarantees;" amended 2019 (2021) |
| Legal system | mixed legal system based on Napoleonic civil and penal law, Islamic religious law, and vestiges of colonial-era laws; judicial review of the constitutionality of laws by the Supreme Constitutional Court |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; non-party state to the ICCt |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: if the father was born in Egypt dual citizenship recognized: only with prior permission from the government residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Abdelfattah ELSISI (since 8 June 2014) head of government: Prime Minister Mostafa MADBOULY (since 7 June 2018) cabinet: Cabinet ministers nominated by the executive branch and approved by the House of Representatives elections/appointments: president elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 6-year term (eligible for 3 consecutive terms); election last held on 26-28 March 2018 (next to be held in 2024); prime minister appointed by the president, approved by the House of Representatives; note - following a constitutional amendment approved by referendum in April 2019, the presidential term was extended from 4 to 6 years and eligibility extended to 3 consecutive terms election results: Abdelfattah ELSISI reelected president in first round; percent of valid votes cast - Abdelfattah ELSISI (independent) 97.1%, Moussa Mostafa MOUSSA (El Ghad Party) 2.9%; note - more than 7% of ballots cast were deemed invalid |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral Parliament consists of: Senate (Majlis Al-Shiyoukh) (300 seats; 100 members elected in single seat constituencies, 100 elected by closed party-list system, and 100 appointed by the president; note - the upper house, previously the Shura Council, was eliminated in the 2014 constitution, reestablished as the Senate, following passage in a 2019 constitutional referendum and approved by the House of Representatives in June 2020 House of Representatives (Majlis Al-Nowaab) (596 seats; 448 members directly elected by individual candidacy system, 120 members - with quotas for women, youth, Christians and workers - elected in party-list constituencies by simple majority popular vote, and 28 members appointed by the president; members of both houses serve 5-year terms elections: Senate - first round held on 11-12 August 2020 (9-10 August for diaspora); second round to be held on 8-9 September (6-7 September for diaspora) (next to be held in 2025) House of Representatives - last held from 17 October to 2 December 2015 (next to be held 24-25 October and 7-8 November 2020) election results: Senate first round results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Nation's Future Party 100, independent 100; composition - NA House of Representatives (2015) - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Free Egyptians Party 65, Future of the Nation 53, New Wafd Party 36, Homeland's Protector Party 18, Republican People's Party 13, Congress Party 12, Al-Nour Party 11, Conservative Party 6, Democratic Peace Party 5, Egyptian National Movement 4, Egyptian Social Democratic Party 4, Modern Egypt Party 4, Freedom Party 3, My Homeland Egypt Party 3, Reform and Development Party 3, National Progressive Unionist Party 2, Arab Democratic Nasserist Party 1, El Serh El Masry el Hor 1, Revolutionary Guards Party 1, independent 351; composition - men 507, women 89, percent of women 14.9% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC) (consists of the court president and 10 justices); the SCC serves as the final court of arbitration on the constitutionality of laws and conflicts between lower courts regarding jurisdiction and rulings; Court of Cassation (CC) (consists of the court president and 550 judges organized in circuits with cases heard by panels of 5 judges); the CC is the highest appeals body for civil and criminal cases, also known as "ordinary justices"; Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) (consists of the court president and NA judges and organized in circuits with cases heard by panels of 5 judges); the SAC is the highest court of the State Council judge selection and term of office: under the 2014 constitution, all judges and justices selected and appointed by the Supreme Judiciary Council and approved as a formality by the president of the Republic; judges appointed for life; under the 2019 amendments, the president has the power to appoint heads of judiciary authorities and courts, the prosecutor general, and the head of the Supreme Constitutional Court subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; Courts of First Instance; courts of limited jurisdiction; Family Court (established in 2004) |
| Political parties and leaders | Al-Nour [Yunis MAKHYUN] Arab Democratic Nasserist Party [Dr. Mohamed ABDUL ELLA ] Congress Party [Omar Al-Mokhtar SEMIDA] Conservative Party [Akmal KOURTAM] Democratic Peace Party [Ahmed FADALY] Egyptian National Movement Party [Gen. Raouf EL SAYED] Egyptian Social Democratic Party [Farid ZAHRAN] El Ghad Party [Moussa Mostafa MOUSSA] El Serh El Masry el Hor [Tarek Ahmed Abbas NADIM] Freedom Party [Salah HASSABALAH] Free Egyptians Party [Essam KHALIL] Homeland’s Protector Party [Lt. Gen. (retired) Galal AL-HARIDI] Modern Egypt Party [Nabil DEIBIS] Nation's Future Party (Mostaqbal Watan) [Mohamed Ashraf RASHAD] My Homeland Egypt Party [Gen. Seif El Islam ABDEL BARY ] National Progressive Unionist (Tagammu) Party [Sayed Abdel AAL] Reform and Development Party [Mohamad Anwar al-SADAT] Republican People’s Party [Hazim AMR] Revolutionary Guards Party [Magdy EL-SHARIF] Wafd Party note - party chairman Bahaa ABU SHOKA resigned in late September 2020 |
| International organization participation | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, BSEC (observer), CAEU, CD, CICA, COMESA, D-8, EBRD, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Motaz Mounir ZAHRAN (since 17 September 2020) chancery: 3521 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 895-5400; [1] (202) 895-5408 FAX: [1] (202) 244-5131 email address and website: consulate@egyptembassy.net https://www.egyptembassy.net/ consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jonathan R. COHEN (since 17 November 2019) embassy: 5 Tawfik Diab St., Garden City, Cairo mailing address: 7700 Cairo Place, Washington DC 20512-7700 telephone: [20-2] 2797-3300 FAX: [20-2] 2797-3200 email address and website: ConsularCairoACS@state.gov https://eg.usembassy.gov/ consulate(s) general: Alexandria |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the national emblem (a gold Eagle of Saladin facing the hoist side with a shield superimposed on its chest above a scroll bearing the name of the country in Arabic) centered in the white band; the band colors derive from the Arab Liberation flag and represent oppression (black), overcome through bloody struggle (red), to be replaced by a bright future (white) note: similar to the flag of Syria, which has two green stars in the white band; Iraq, which has an Arabic inscription centered in the white band; and Yemen, which has a plain white band |
| National symbol(s) | golden eagle, white lotus; national colors: red, white, black |
| National anthem | name: "Bilady, Bilady, Bilady" (My Homeland, My Homeland, My Homeland) lyrics/music: Younis-al QADI/Sayed DARWISH note: adopted 1979; the current anthem, less militaristic than the previous one, was created after the signing of the 1979 peace treaty with Israel; Sayed DARWISH, commonly considered the father of modern Egyptian music, composed the anthem |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
