Egypt’s president urges scaling up efforts to develop unsafe slums, ensure decent life for dwellers

CAIRO – 20 September 2020: Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on Sunday urged continuous state efforts and projects to develop unsafe slums in the capital, Cairo, to secure appropriate housing units for citizens, the Egyptian Presidency said.

Developing unsafe areas in all engineering, organizational and environmental aspects aims at improving the humanitarian and housing situation of dwellers of these areas, the President said, as he met with Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli and Housing Minister Assem El Gazzar.

The step comes based on leading experience of the state throughout the past few years in this field across the Egyptian governorates.

Gazzar reviewed with the president the strategy to develop Historic Cairo, especially Fustat and the vicinity of the Egyptian Museum of Egyptian Civilization.

In this regard, Sisi urged enhancing efforts to develop Historic Cairo and highlighting its role as a cultural and tourist center.

Sisi in July has toured the third phase of the Asmarat housing project in Cairo, which aims at providing housing units for those who had inhabited unsafe slums.

Asmarat 3 in Al-Mokattam district provides fully-furnished 7,440 housing units, each rented for a very low price of LE 350 ($22) per month.

Concerning Asmarat dwellers, 13.6 percent of the families have female breadwinners, 47.7 percent consist of more than four members, and 65 percent have irregular workers, Social Solidarity Minister Nevin Al-Qabbaj said.

Also, 14.5 percent of the families suffer from chronic diseases or disabilities and 33 percent are illiterate.

For his part, Chief of the Armed Forces’ Engineering Authority Ehab El Faar said the authority took part in developing 79 areas in the capital Cairo and the governorates of Giza and Alexandria in the northern part of the country, worth LE 28 billion ($1.75 billion).