I am a PhD candidate at American University in Washington, DC. I am interested in state formation and governance in low income countries. My dissertation examines the influence of foreign aid on incumbent advantage in African presidential elections.Bread shortages in Egypt
For those of you not up to date on my life (I don’t blame you), I am doing an internship in Cairo, Egypt. Being in the country, I found this CNN article on bread riots to be a little unsettling.
I have been in Cairo since December and I haven’t seen any signs of bread shortages or riots, but I am mostly in middle or upper-class areas (most of the poor areas are on the outskirts and near the airport). One thing I have noticed is that police are everywhere. My girlfriend counted 73 in one day! This city really makes you understand the meaning of “police state.” On the upside, the shortage has the security personnel finally doing something useful: baking bread.
