Egypt's Economic Predicament contains a succinct and lucid analysis of virtually all the major economic problems of Egypt: their origin, development and the prospect of solving them. It presents today's economic problems of Egypt in a wider historical context and shows their relationship to current social issues, including the growth of religious fanaticism.The book also contains a powerful critique of the "Structural Adjustment" program of reform, which constitutes today's conventional wisdom.The subtitle of the book describes it as "a study in the interaction of external pressure, political folly and social tension", and as such it should be of interest not only to scholars and students of development in Egypt and the Middle East, but to those occupied with other Third World countries as well.