Egyptian Businessmen in a Historical Perspective

Abstract

This chapter starts by providing a background on the relations between Egyptian landowners/capitalists and the British during the period of British occupation (1882–1952). I argue that Egyptian capitalists like Talaat Harb refused foreign interference in the economy and established local industries and companies. Then the chapter examines businessmen under Nasser, Sadat, and Mubarak during the 1980s. I argue that the political economy of authoritarianism from Nasser to Mubarak relied on co-opting businessmen. As mentioned in the previous chapter, Nasser introduced land reform to redistribute the land, and at the same time, he created a new constituency composed of middle class citizens, workers, and peasants, who supported and benefited from his socialist policies. However, while Nasser’s regime excluded the big landowners of the old regime from political and economic life, he did not turn against all of them. Nasser co-opted members of the upper class from the old regime, as well as the state bourgeoisie, for the purpose of implementing his national development plan.