Over the last three or four decades environmental pollution, population density and other causes have posed an increasing threat to mediaeval Cairo. Jill Kamil outlines the sorry history of conservation, and the first realistic long-term goal for its protection Click to view caption In February 2002 a Cairo symposium brought together UNESCO experts, archaeologists, restorers, architects and urban developers from all over the world. The aim was to evaluate historic Cairo's conservation to date, remedy past errors and, it was hoped, place the historic zone under a unified body -- as opposed to many ministries and government- sponsored organisations, all of which up to that point had been working at cross purposes. Collaboration was widely regarded as an impossible endeavour. When Gaballa Ali Gaballa, then chairman of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), told the conference: "These institutions are governed by law and are unlikely to change," he was voicing the view of the bulk of delegates. Nevertheless collaboration is necessary if historic Cairo is to be saved from further deterioration. "It can be achieved... with determination, stamina and endless patience," argues Adli Bishay, director of a project in Gamaliya known as FEDA (Friends of Environment and Development Association). The first phase of the FEDA project for sustainable development in Gammaliya has now been achieved, and the second phase launched. Financial aid came from the Egyptian-Swiss Development Fund (ESDF). Technical studies had to be carried out in cooperation with the Waqf Authority (the Ministry of Endowment and the owner of the properties within the project area), the Cairo Governorate, the SCA, the Ministry of International Cooperation, the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency and the Higher Committee for Historic Cairo. "Ours is a community-based plan of action," Bishay said. "The Waqf Authority owns most of the ruined buildings in Gammaliya, and one of our most difficult tasks was to gain their confidence and support. Wekalet Kahla, for example, which acquired its name from a soap factory into which it was once converted, was originally the 17th-century sabil-kuttab of the wekala of Auda Pasha. This vast, ruined and derelict place, with several environmentally hazardous workshops along its façade, has now been cleared of debris and upgraded to house non-polluting workshops that will be transferred from the Al-Rabe'a area opposite the Mosque of Al-Aqmar (see map), thus minimising air pollution and congestion in the heart of the mediaeval city. "The philosophy behind the project is that there can be no sustained development or meaningful growth without clear commitment to preserve the environment, promote the rational use of resources, and at the same time put historic buildings -- mosques, baits, sabils, madrassas, souqs, hammams, wekalas, religious schools, and hostels -- to good use. "The framework for conservation, development and self-reliance is extremely complex," Bishay said. "It touches on history, architecture, infrastructure and sociological and morphological factors. In our case, it necessitated a study in the social condition of the people of the area, their percentage of literacy, the distribution of the workshops in the project area (for wood, metal and leather-work, weaving and spinning, shisha production, and paper-sack manufacture). We had to determine which were environmentally-friendly and could remain functional, and which contaminated the air. Finding accommodation for the latter has not been easy because the factory owners had to be convinced that it was necessary and, moreover, accept the new location provided for them." Egypt's capital, the commercial and industrial centre since the end of the 19th century, has the highest concentration of mediaeval monuments in the world and the historic zone (also known as Islamic and Mediaeval Cairo) remains a central production area until today. Therefore, any project to "save the mediaeval city" is doomed to failure unless it takes into account that the monuments themselves form only an infinitesimal part of the social fabric of the traditional city. To revitalise and conserve it depends on understanding the forces that created the city in the first place: the pattern of streets, domestic architecture and commercial and manufacturing activities, all of which form the bulk of historical heritage. The FEDA project zone lies south of the Fatimid walls of Cairo within the area marked by Shari' Al-Mu'izz Li-din Allah to the west and Shari' Al- Gamaliya to the east, with Shari' Al- Dababiyah to the north and, south, the alleyway lying south of Darb Al-Asfar and running alongside the Al-Aqmar Mosque. Within this area, which lies just north of the largest concentration of historic monuments in Cairo, are huge non- functional khans or wekalat. These inns for travelling merchants were built around large courtyards, with stables and warehouses at ground level and living accommodation above. "The most well-known example is Wekalat Al- Ghouri, which has recently been restored," said Bishay, who went on to explain that the aim of FEDA was to upgrade and reactivate the vast derelict inner space of the wekala and use it to ease the population pressure and pollution in neighbouring zones. "Take Kahla, for example," he said. "This was previously the wekala of Ouda Pasha. Apart from 10 commercial shops on the façade on Shari' Gammaliya, and a section at the back which was built to house earthquake victims after 1992, it was a water-logged, filthy ruin. Three quarters of its vast space was owned by the Egyptian Waqf Authority and getting approval to carry out our project was difficult and time- consuming. Even when we gained permission from the authority in 1997, we had to approach the Antiquities Department and Cairo Governorate over the next two years before we could actually move ahead." Kahla was cleared of solid and liquid waste. The neighbouring building's sewage system had to be replaced to prevent seepage. The double-storey building around the central court was renovated and restored so as to accommodate the workshops which would be transferred from Al-Rabe'a, Al-Kharroub, and the area to the rear of Al-Aqmar Mosque. "When the Al-Rabe'a area is vacated it will be transformed into a learning and training centre to serve the residents of the area; illiterate men and women will be encouraged in craft specialisation and sales outlets for their work will be located at the training centre itself," Bishay said. "Likewise, once Wekalet Al-Kharroub has been vacated and its inhabitants settled in housing (which has already been made available by the Cairo Governorate and, I might add, accepted by 13 families) it will be developed into a health unit, nursery and library." Within the demonstration area there are also six historic buildings that warrant attention. "But this will come at a later stage of the plan," Bishay stressed. At last the carrot before the horse syndrome is being reversed, at least in one small area of historic Cairo. Back in the 1970s the concept of preserving the heritage of the historic zone with consideration to the rest of Cairo was clearly defined by SPARE (The Society for the Preservation of the Architectural Resources of Egypt). Some ancient mosques, sabils, madrassas and ancient churches were restored in subsequent years, and in 1979 mediaeval Cairo was put on the World Heritage list. But the society's overall policy for the protection of the mediaeval core of the city was, tragically, never pursued. Worse, it came under fire as unprofessional from prominent restoration and conservation experts, largely because Portland cement was used. All work was consequently put on hold, and time took its toll. Only following the earthquake in 1992 was attention again drawn to the disastrous condition of the long-neglected monuments. The quake provided an opportunity to generate interest and reactivate the UNESCO support such as SPARE had enjoyed. Unfortunately the focus of interest had by then shifted from long-term planning to cosmetic restoration of individual buildings; that is to their reconstruction rather than their conservation. Indeed, many houses, sabils and other Islamic buildings continue to be rapidly restored, some with the help of foreign finance and expertise, without due consideration either to the city's infrastructure or to the traditional role played by the people of the district. As Nawal Hassan, chair of the Association for the Urban Development of Islamic Cairo, pointed out during the Cairo symposium: "Thousands of families' livelihoods will be affected [by the plan to seal off the mediaeval city and turn it into an open-air museum]. Wholesale and retail shops will lose their clients if they have to reach their destination on foot or from perpendicular streets." One might add that tourists show little interest in mediaeval buildings with newly-stuccoed walls, marble panelling applied to the interior of the courtyards, mashrabiya windows that look newly fabricated, and cobbled streets paved with tiles. "Foreign visitors want to explore the heart of a living city a thousand years old," a tourist guide said. "There is a dynamic population in the mediaeval city that has been there, well, forever, and the idea of protecting tourists from the sight of them and evacuating them to other areas is ridiculous." Unfortunately, the problem will only be exacerbated now that the decision is forging ahead to pedestrianise Shari' Al- Azhar and divert traffic underground through a tunnel running the full length of the street. "Our aim is not to improve individual buildings but to advance the quality of life by upgrading hygiene through environmental control and community development services," Bishay said. "We are making use of buildings, not transforming them into museums. We are not displacing communities of factory workers simply because they are unsightly to our vision of an appropriate 'tourist destination'. We are creating conditions wherein they may continue to play their traditional role in community life, and are proud to do so. This is a demonstration project towards sustainable development with an integrated approach. When you see the inhabitants of the historic zone begin to understand what is happening, and see how they respond when they realise how they themselves can actively participate in preserving their own historic heritage, it is immensely rewarding. It breeds a sense of worth, of pride." FEDA's strategies fall into four main groups: public policy and legislation; information management, monitoring and public awareness; and technical support, which entails research and development -- training and institutional and international cooperation. "During the last few months FEDA has been working with the owners of some air polluting workshops, and their current systems are being modified to keep pollution within maximum acceptable conditions. Once this is achieved they will be transferred to the renovated Kahla site, which is designed as a non-polluting workshop complex," Bishay said. "As we move into the second phase of the project, we feel positive, and hopeful that its success will provide a base of future plans on the development, restoration and conservation of Islamic Cairo." One of those historical monuments in or flanking the project area is the Mosque of Al-Aqmar being restore by Indian Shiites. At present it is functioning solely as a mosque, but it could -- in line with FEDA philosophy -- be put to additional use if turned into an informal study centre organised by the Imam for Qur'anic studies and the teaching of history. Plaques of the plan of the building and historical details would facilitate understanding and lead to increased respect for heritage. The Madrassa of Methqal, which was restored in 1973 in a joint project by the Islamic Department of the SCA and the German Archaological Institute in Cairo, is popular as a Friday mosque. But the upper floors remain closed. Although small, they could be used for Qur'anic readings or for historical studies with an emphasis on the Mameluks. The whole philosophy regarding protection of the mediaeval city needs to be changed from one of restoration, conservation and open air museums into one of sustainable development. It is to be hoped that FEDA's lead will be followed. Recommended reading: The Cairo Heritage: Essays in Honor of Laila Ali Ibrahim, ed. Doris Behrens- Abuseif, AUC Press, 2000.
