Inequality refers to differences in living conditions in a society; it could also be defined as an unequal distribution of a country's resources among its population. Inequality is obviously an important problem, since higher levels of inequality generally translate into higher levels of poverty, crime, and social unrest. However, it is often ignored by society. Indeed, people have many misconceptions about inequality and its origins. Some argue that there is equality of opportunity and that it is people's fault if they earn less than they should. This is a myth, however, since most hard-working, low-income students rarely go to college, and when they do, they usually attend public universities. The idea that poor people are poor because they "didn't work as hard" or because they are "lazy" is a very ignorant idea, one that people choose to believe in to justify inequality. I decided to explore inequality further because it is deeply rooted in Egyptian society; it is one of the few places where you can find luxurious five-star hotels near poor slums, and since the revolution, the problem of inequality has been a hot topic in Egyptian society and politics. Egypt's Gini coefficient, which is the most commonly used measure of income inequality, stands at approximately 30.7 (World Bank 2009). Inequality is seen as limiting both Egypt's potential economic growth and its desired poverty reduction. Agricultural economics expert Nadia Belhaj Hassine perfectly summarizes the inequalities in the World Bank study on inequality of opportunity in Egypt: Inequality of outcomes, such as in income or education, reflects differences in effort and...... middle of paper ......the liberalization of trade. This includes policies such as tariff reductions, which led to the expansion of many economic sectors, which in turn reduced inequalities between urban and rural skilled men, as well as for women (gender inequality) and have led to increased employment opportunities for women. However, the success of these policies in reducing inequality had its limits, as at the same time there was an increase in inequality for unskilled men and for skilled women in rural areas (Chahir & Zaki 2012). These trade liberalization policies can be said to be partly responsible for the decline in income inequality in Egypt, as the expansion of certain sectors has reduced gender inequality and inequality between rural and urban areas. , while increasing inequalities between unskilled men and qualified women in rural areas..