Al-Masry Al-Youm has learnt that the government has decided to abolish the right to acquire the lands under the jurisdiction of the General Authority for Construction and Agricultural Development, known as the Agricultural Development Authority, in all national projects such as Toshka, Sinai, Western Delta and East Oweinat. This right is to be replaced by the right of usufruct for a period between 49 and 90 years, especially with regard to the lands that will be opened up for agricultural investment. Sources at the Ministry of Agriculture affirmed that the government's decision aims to achieve agricultural development and horizontal expansion rather than turning agricultural activities into irregular ones with a negative impact on agricultural development. They pointed out that investors' right of usufruct will have to be linked to agriculture or agricultural manufacturing and the establishment of housing compounds to increase demographic density in the areas of the major projects. The sources pointed out that the government's decision does not apply to the lands for which the State has already given its green light to investors' and, more generally, people's right to acquire. Instead, it will only apply to the areas that will be opened up for agricultural investments.
The Ministry of Agriculture has decided to continue accepting applications for regularizing new property-claimed lands beyond the end of this month, and until the Law No. 148 of 2006 is finally amended.
The new amendments will set a period to regularize cases of property-claimed lands and will give the minister the authority to define these periods according to the strategy of the Ministry of Agriculture and the objectives of agricultural development. The goal is to definitively eliminate the problem of encroachment on State-owned lands.
Meanwhile, the disputes between Agriculture Minister Amin Abaza and Mahmoud Abdel Barr, Executive Director of the Agricultural Development Authority, are officially over after the Minister issued yesterday the decree No. 854 accepting Abdel Barr's resignation from June 16. The resolution appointed Ayman El-Madawi, Head of the Central Department for Ownership and Disposal, as Executive Director of the Authority.
