Reforming the Egyptian Cotton Sector - Competition and Coordination

Abstract: The cotton industry is facing new competition due to changing comparative advantages on the world market. Egypt is one of the countries in which we have seen a reform in order to make the cotton sector more efficient and competitive. To be able to reach that goal, it is of great importance that the liberalization involves a good balance between competition and coordination. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how the structure of the Egyptian cotton sector has changed and what affect the reform has had on competition and coordination. Throughout the study it has been evident that the institutional structure in the Egyptian cotton industry has changed appreciably and that many more players are active on the market. Competition has increased, the vertical integration has decreased and private actors now have a role in coordinating the sector. However, there are still improvements to be made.