Egyptian officials have welcomed France's support for the country's plan towards urbanisation and sustainable cities during a conference Thursday that kicked off the French-Egyptian Urban Week in Cairo. A delegation of France's main employers' federation MEDEF is attending the week-long forum. The body's International Africa committee president Gerard Wolf told audience Thursday that Egypt can set a model of suitable cities for the rest of Africa. He said his country will provide necessary support to Egypt's plans while urging to swiftly move towards putting them in effect. Egypt is building a new administrative capital on Cairo's eastern outskirts aimed at expanding the city's urban area, which faces increasing overcrowding. Chairman of the New Administrative Capital Ahmed Zaki Abdeen told the conference that Cairo was very keen to enlist the help of the French in carrying out the mega-project, adding that plans for the capital will be reviewed with the French side and necessary amendments will be made accordingly if needed. Abdeen played a video presentation elaborating on the new city, which will accommodate 6.5-7 million people and be home to government ministries, residential units and an international airport. The event is organised by the French embassy's economic department, Al-Ahram Hebdo and the French Chamber of Commerce. Attendees at the conference's opening session on Thursday included former Egyptian Prime Minister and Presidential Advisor for National and Strategic Projects Ibrahim Mahlab, Environment Minister Khaled Fahmy, chairman of Al-Ahram news organization Abdel Mohsen Salama, and French ambassador to Cairo Stéphane Romatet. Fahmy said his ministry is working on a new waste recycling system that will be adopted acoss the country's industrial sector. A new recycling law will be put forward to the parliament shortly, he said. Egypt aims to push up its renewable energy from 5% to 20% by 2020-2022. The forum, which runs from 22 to 28 Nomever, is set to discuss the possible role of French and Egyptian companies in implementing Egypt's plan of urban sustainable development. It will also look at major achievements of Egyptian and French companies in the fields of energy efficiency and smart city projects, as well as ways to apply these models and other urban development solutions in Egyptian cities. The forum also aims at opening channels of dialogue between the private sector and governmental bodies on sustainable urban planning in Egypt. A series of events and discussions will be held through Nomeber 28 with urban planning experts, private companies and civil society representatives, as well as Egyptian and French decision-makers within the forum.
