Muhammad Ali then set about modernizing Egypt. Across the Middle East, North Africa, and within the Ottoman Empire especially, rulers looked to Europe as a model in order to modernize their peoples and kingdoms. This modernization entailed efforts to further literacy, provide better medical care, industrialize, build infrastructure, and streamline the economy, among other things. Loftier goals included making strides in literature, the arts, and the sciences. In this regard, Muhammad Ali was quite successful. He built railroads, raised a powerful army, bureaucratized the government, and
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