Cairo: A recent report by the Al Ahram Center for Strategic Studies, titled “The Role of Regulatory Bodies in Promoting Transparency and Combating Corruption”, showed that a high portion of Egyptians believe that the recent rise in commodity prices is a manifestation of systemic corruption. The study noted that 28.5% of Egyptians believe that the rise in prices is a manifestation of corruption and that this increase is widening the gap between rich and poor, creating a lack of discipline in government and fostering ill-treatment of citizens. The results of the study, which surveyed 1400 residents, were revealed at a seminar headed by Dr. Ahmed Darwish, the Minister of Administrative Development, and noted the waning ability of political parties and civil society to tackle corruption. The study pointed out that 88% of Egyptians considered low-wages as the main reason for corruption in Egypt and that poverty is one of its manifestations. The results, which were presented yesterday by Gamal Abdel-Gawad, Director of the Al Ahram Center, at a workshop organized by the Center in a joint venture with the Danish Institute for Dialogue. According to the Center's poll, 66% of the population described the economic situation in Egypt as bad, and 71% believed that the situation was better three years ago. On the other hand, the citizens tended to see the future of democracy in Egypt in an optimistic way, with 51% saying that the level of democracy will improve in the next three years, compared 21% that believe democracy will retreat. Gawad attributed the negative assessments of citizens with regard to economic conditions to dissatisfaction with the private sector economic system of the state. The majority of citizens believe that the best system would strengthen the role of the state and the public sector; only 20% of citizens considered privatization to be beneficial to Egypt's economy. Gawad revealed that corruption is not a priority for the Egyptian citizen, but that citizens are focused on the issues of unemployment, the fight against poverty, financial corruption and political reform. **reporting by Mohamed Abdel Salam BM
