Most of the country is dry, sandy desert with a narrow, fertile strip which follows the river valley and widens into the delta. Most of the people are Arab and follow the Muslim faith. The economy is dominated by farming, oil, tourism, income from ships passing through the Suez Canal, and money earned by Egyptians working abroad. With a population of some 9.5 million, Cairo is the largest city in Africa and one of the fastest growing. Some live among the graves of the City of the Dead, a huge cemetery on the outskirts of the city.
People also live on the roofs of the many high-rise buildings in Cairo.
Egypt is littered with ancient monuments. Every year, millions of tourists flock to Egypt to see the pyramids and other sites, or to take a boat trip on the River Nile. The pyramids, built more than 4,000 years ago as tombs for the pharaohs, are one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and the only one to survive. Egypt is the world's largest producer of dates. It is also one of the world's biggest cotton growers.