In order to be able to compare the population densities of the various
governorates correctly, one must take into account the different shares of
desert land. Considering this factor one recognizes that the governorates of
the central Nile delta are extremely densely populated: El-Qalyubiya with
3,301 inhabitants/km2
, El-Minufiya with 1,802 inhabitants/km2
 and El-Ghar-
biya with 1,754 inhabitants/km2
, according to the 1996 census. On the other
hand the marginal delta governorates of Kafr-esh-Sheikh and El-Beheira with
647 inhabitants/km2
 and 394 inhabitants/km2
 respectively are much less
densely populated. In Upper Egypt the governorates of Sohag with 2,019
inhabitants/km2
 and Asyut with 1,804 inhabitants/km2
 are those with the
greatest population density.