The Egyptian government announced that the deadline to receive reconciliation requests for building violations will be extended until the end of December, according to a cabinet statement released on Wednesday. The announcement, which was made during a cabinet meeting held earlier today, came two days after the previous deadline expired on 30 November. This is the third time the government has delayed the reconciliation deadline since the reconciliation process started earlier this year. Egyptian Cabinet Spokesperson Nader Saad said the decision comes in response to the large volume of requests for reconciliation filed by citizens. A number of non-government organisations, which are currently paying the expenses of reconciliation for residents in the most impoverished villages, also appealed to the cabinet to extend the deadline, Saad added. Egypt has seen a significant rise in illegal construction since the security vacuum that followed the 2011 uprising, with many people constructing multi-storey buildings without acquiring the necessary permits or complying with engineering safety standards. In January, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ratified a law allowing owners of illegally constructed buildings to settle with the state, with violations pertaining to safety standards, authorised height or purpose, and historic buildings excluded from the initiative. The reconciliation fees are set to be allocated for development in governorates and to upgrade the level of services provided to citizens.
