Sisi orders Endowments Min. to seek revenue from its lands

CAIRO – 26 December 2017: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi gave directives for the officials at the Ministry of Endowments to use lands and properties belonging to the ministry to increase the ministry’s revenues.

During his Tuesday meeting with top officials at the Ministry of Endowments, President Sisi stressed the value of public lands and the need to having them protected for their significant contribution in boosting the national economy.

For his side, Ahmed Abdel Hafiz, chairman of the Awqaf Authority, said that the ministry is currently adopting a comprehensive development plan targeted at the ministry-led plots of lands and other properities, pointing out the efforts recently undertaken by the ministry to curb the flow of land encroachment that has been popular over the past six years.

Hafiz also said that the ministry took it upon itself to raise awareness of the principles of true Islam by sending out several convoys to the people of remote villages and that it is always keen to set a foot in intentional conferences regarding such matters.

Moreover, Abdel Hafiz pointed out that he is preparing a new draft law to present the necessary procedures to maintain proper records for the lands belonging to the ministry, as well as means to regulate their revenues in order to increase the role played by the ministry within society.

The ministry is keen to carry out its social role by providing support to the neediest groups, noting that that the ministry has built 270 houses in the terrorism-affected al-Rawda village in Northern Sinai, in cooperation with the Ministry of Housing, in addition to 100 houses in the semi-deserted city of Hala'ib,” he said.

On November 24, the village of al-Rawdah witnessed Egypt’s deadliest attack in recent history. At least 311 people were killed when militants opened fire on people attending prayers at the city’s central mosque.