Diagnosis and Challenges of Sustainable Agricultural Development in Egypt

This chapter diagnoses the challenges of the sustainable agricultural development in Egypt via the trend of the agricultural trade inflow, rural poverty indicators and causes; agricultural resources use; migration and agricultural labor employment; public health and education Indicators. The analysis recommended a rural development program as an approach to sustainable agricultural. The degradation in Egyptian exports to the World was mainly due to the Impacts of Non-Tariff Barriers. The rural poverty is deeper than Urban and concentrates in Rural Upper Egypt. 92 % of farms are less than 2 ha generated average farm income in 2010 less than $2 per capita/day. They relied upon off-farm income to pass the poverty line. There is speed shrinkage in the agricultural acreage, deterioration in soil Fertility, and numerous types of waste in the available quota of the irrigation water and its quality. There is significant migration rate and agricultural unemployment and imbalance between the expanded access to piped water and the lack of sanitation network in rural. While 30 beds and 13 doctors serving 10,000 citizens in big cities only less than 20 beds and 2 doctors serve 10,000 citizens in rural towns. Although; the literacy Rural/Urban gap was decreased from 45 % in 1995 to less than 21 % in 2010, the literacy rate in upper rural Egypt is the least. The recommended rural development program towards agricultural sustainability requires: Identification of the targeting poorest villages and their needs eligible for livelihood; the appropriateness of the governmental services to meet the actual needs in rural; and the social welfare policies that alleviate poverty by removing poor infrastructure conditions.