Morsi faces test on Egyptian economy

A few months before Egypt’s presidential election in June, one of the country’s leading businessmen quipped that it would take a crazy man to want to lead the Arab world’s most populous country.

It made sense to be cynical at that time. No one knew where Egypt was heading or what a military hungry for power had in mind for the future. It was not even clear what the president’s job description would be.

Less than three months into that job, however, Mohamed Morsi is defying the sceptics.

He was dismissed as a weak candidate – a second choice fielded by his Islamist organisation, the ambitious Muslim Brotherhood. However Morsi has declared himself to be boss, pushing aside senior generals and lifting Egyptian spirits with the promise of a more assertive foreign policy role.

The real test of his presidency will be in fixing Egypt’s faltering economy – a long-term and exceedingly difficult project. In the meantime, he has created a feel-good factor with political – if still only symbolic – gestures on the international stage.