![]() ![]() ![]() It is an essential part of Egypt’s national identity as well. It also boosts Egypt’s weight on the global stage and acts as a strategic barrier against potential threats from the east of the country. The Suez Canal is just as important for Egypt, providing much needed revenue and hard currency since its nationalisation in 1956. East Asia’s rise as the principal site of global manufacturing has lent the canal even greater strategic significance, as many essential inputs for manufactured goods must head east before the finished goods flow west. More than 12% of this trade now moves through the canal. While the canal has been shut down several times in the past, interruptions to shipping traffic are felt more acutely today because global trade has increased exponentially over the past few decades. The Suez Canal has been a vital waterway since it opened in 1869, but more so today than ever before. The incident also highlighted the fragility of this crucial link in the global supply chain, putting efforts to find alternative shipping routes back under the spotlight. The importance of the Suez Canal for global trade and Egypt’s economy was made clear as ships were forced to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope and a significant Egyptian revenue stream was interrupted. The ship was stuck in the southern, narrower portion of the canal, which had not been touched in the much touted canal expansion project in 2014. In the early morning hours of 23 March 2021, the Ever Given, a large container ship, ran aground while transiting the Suez Canal, bringing all traffic to a halt for six days before it was finally set afloat thanks to the assistance of Smit, a Dutch salvage firm. ![]()
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