Science - February 3, 2011
Food crisis hits Cairo
The inhabitants of Egypt spend an average of forty percent of their income on food. Rising food prices therefore affect the standard of life of the Egyptian population a great deal, according to a LEI factsheet on high food prices.
A grain-importing country such as Egypt faces a lot of problems as a result. Food prices there were already very high. Egyptians spend on the average forty percent of their income on food, compared to twelve percent on housing. Now that food prices have risen, inflation also follows. This leads to devaluation of money - the Egyptian pound is falling in value.
In addition to the call for more democracy, high food prices are also a reason for poor Egyptians to protest against its government. During the former food crisis in 2008, there were also demonstrations and unrest in different Egyptian cities.