An alternative desert development proposal by Abou Zeid Rageh* Urbanisation, in essence, is the outcome of the mutual interaction between man and his living space. In Arabic tradition it is called "Omran", which roughly means development of livelihood and building of civilisation. Egyptian urbanisation started with the early human settlements on the Nile banks and was mainly shaped by the pattern of agricultural life. In this fertile land and moderate climate man build his first civilisation, with its remarkable social order and great achievements in the fields of arts and sciences. It is clear now that the course of this traditional urbanisaton is coming to its end. It has reached its potential and Egypt needs to carve a fresh course of "Omran" if it is to start a new cycle of civilisation. Egypt's population remained semi- constant for most of its history. There were approximately three million inhabitants living on about one million feddans of agricultural land. The living space takes the form of a narrow linear valley extended from south to north flanked by deserts on both sides with a fan-like delta at its northern end. The inhabited area is so limited; it does not exceed five per cent of the total geographic area of Egypt. Most of the country remains uninhabited, almost empty. Through the 19th century and till the mid 20th century (about 150 years) the population increased to 20 millions inhabitants and the cultivated area increased also to 6 millions feddans. The rate of population increase was almost the same as the spatial increase. In other words, the balance between man and his living space remained stable during this period as it had been before. The situation totally changed after the mid 20th century. The population increased from 20 million to about 73 million at present, and is expected to reach 93 million by 2020. Such an exponential increase has not been coupled with equivalent spatial expansion. On the contrary, it has been accompanied by a considerable decrease of living space. During this period Egypt lost 1.5 million feddans, (about 36 per cent of the fertile land), due to the continuous and rapid construction and the expansion of cities and villages on agricultural land. We still lose about 60,000 feddans every year due to urban growth. If such spatial erosion continues at the current level, it is expected that Egypt -- as the world knows it through her long history -- will disappear forever some time between year 2070 and year 2100 as anticipated by some urban planners. The mid 20th century represents the critical point where the relation between man and space reached its ultimate balance. After that, space began to shrink rapidly and was unable to sustain the increasing population. In other words, as a result of overpopulation and the erosion of space, the balance between man and his living space in Egypt was seriously undermined for the first time in history. Such an imbalance seriously jeopardizes Egypt's very existence. Egypt now has one of the highest population densities in the world, if not the highest. Indicators clearly show that the Egyptian urban quality of life is considerably low. In view of this critical situation, Egyptians must spread out to new horizons outside the Delta and Nile Valley. The challenges they will face in taming the desert will be similar to those faced by their forefathers in taming the Nile and settling on its banks. Science and modern technology could be of great help in dealing with the challenges of adapting to the new desert habitat. Characteristics of the new space are greatly different from those of the old one. First, it is not a narrow strip of space; but rather, a vast multi-dimensional one that extends outwards in four cardinal directions. Second, it is a space whose climate, environment and ecology are greatly diversified. Some parts are coastal areas; others are desert lands, depressions or mountainous heights. Furthermore, its productive potential is also diversified since it includes almost all possible activities such as industry, mining, agriculture and tourism. In this new environment, the possibility of using wind and sun in generating energy should be encouraged. Also, the use of rain and underground water must be maximized. Desert and costal areas require special architectural style as well as planning patterns appropriate for human settlements in these areas; very much different from traditional architecture and urban planning. An overview of the Egyptian spacescape reveals that it takes the form of a network of vertical and horizontal lines. The vertical lines, representing the longitudinal development corridors, extend from north to south in the same direction of the currently inhabited corridor. The horizontal lines, which extend from east to west, represent the main transportation arteries that would transfer energy, utilities, population, materials and products between the parallel longitudinal corridors of development. This network of vertical and horizontal corridors is very similar to the longitude and latitude lines in geography. The following are the proposed longitudinal corridors of development:- 1- A corridor of agricultural development extending along the Nile River, at the border of the eastern plateau in Upper Egypt. 2- An eastern coast corridor along the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez. It is mainly a touristic development corridor. 3- A central corridor located in the eastern plateau between the Red Sea and the Nile Valley. Development in this area will depend largely on its abundant mineral resources. 4- Sinai Peninsula covers the coastlines along Gulf of Suez, the Gulf of Aqaba and the Mediterranean, in addition to its central plateau. It has great potential for the development of tourism, agriculture, mining and industry. 5- The Western Desert depressions starting from Toshka valley in the south passing through Al-Kharga, Al-Dakhla, Al-Farafra and Al-Baharia oases up to Siwa in the north. This corridor is often referred to as "the Western Green Belt" and has great possibilities of agricultural, industrial and mining development. 6- Northern coast corridor between El-Saloom and North Delta. It is suitable for touristic and agricultural development. The traversal corridors representing the main arteries of transportation and communication would run perpendicular to the longitudinal development corridors in Upper and Lower Egypt. These arteries would transfer power, utilities, raw materials and agricultural and industrial products between development corridors and help population moving from the currently inhabited areas in the Valley and Delta to the new development areas. Preliminary studies indicate that the area which could be developed represents from 25 per cent to 35 per cent of Egypt's total area. It could be inhabited in successive stages as follows: 1-Stage of direct moving to the desert lands adjacent to the old valley. These areas include Salheya Desert in East Delta and El Tahrir in West Delta. They include also the beginning of the dry valleys in Upper Egypt. This stage has already begun by the establishment of 10th of Ramadan City, El-Oboor, El-Salheya in East Delta and El-Amrya, El Nobarya and El-Sadat City in West Delta and the twin cities of New Beni-Suif, New Menya, New Sohag and New Aswan in Upper Egypt. 2- Stage of poles of growth located far from the present inhibited areas. Examples of such poles are: the northern coast, El-Arish valley, the desert located between El-Fayum and Beni-Suef, the High Dam area, the Red Sea coast, the New Valley and Toshka regions. 3- Stage of building the infrastructure of the transversal corridors. 4- Stage of total comprehensive development of all regions. It is important to define the targeted social groups which will move to the new communities. Newly formed families constitute the most dynamic population and the less attached group to the old land. They could be the natural nominees for moving to the new settlements. Recruits can be encouraged to settle in the new settlements after ending the military service, during which they can be trained to acquire some skills that enable them to work in the new development regions. Developing Egypt, Old or New, could be achieved only through comprehensive national and regional planning. Egypt has been run by a central administration all through her long history. Centralization was justified in the past, but it can't fit the new man-space order. The need to replace the old central system by a regional system has been widely felt. Dividing Egypt into administrative regions will help decentralization and allow greater participation by the people in running their local affairs. Dividing the country into regions should take the form of transversal division, so that each region would include segments of different economic activities. Such activities can help increase the overall rate of development in each region. Furthermore, the transversal division will make it possible for the regions in Upper Egypt to have outlets on the Red Sea, in addition to outlets on the Mediterranean for north regions. The new regional boundaries would include both the old and new lands in order to integrate them into one economic and social entity. It is also proposed that the regional capitals be located in new cities as this would significantly promote the growth of these cities and avoid overpopulation in the capitals of the present governorates. * The writer is former chairman of the National Research Centre for Housing and Building
