The announcement of the new cabinet, which eventually comprised only a handful of new faces, was extensively trailed as marking a new beginning. Few at the time, however, expected it to tackle the on-going business of reform with quite as much energy as it has shown. The new government, it appears, has decided not just to revisit reform but to pursue its goals at a pace with which many find it difficult to keep up. The reforms announced so far -- particularly the restructuring of tariff and tax systems -- come at a cost. It is estimated that government revenues will fall by over LE7 billion in the short term, leading to growing pressure on an already alarming budget deficit. Yet the government remains convinced that whatever the short term impacts, the restructuring is essential to longer term economic health. In this year-ender issue the economy page staff examine the major events of the past 12 months, and their likely impact on economic performance in 2005.

Agreements come and go, and very few have raised the controversy surrounding the recently signed protocol establishing Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZ) in Egypt