Tarek Wafiq, Egypt's Minister of Housing and Urban Communities, announced on Wednesday that the ministry has submitted a request to the Cabinet seeking to amend the Tenders and Auctions Act No. 59/79 to include transparent public allocations of lands. During his opening note in Cityscape Egypt Summit, H.E Wafiq further said the ministry also submitted 3 weeks ago to the cabinet a draft law as regard to the Suez Canal development process noting that the main feature of the project is to establish an authority in Suez Canal area to be organized by a council of governors. He also asserted that Egypt's Upper House – Shura Council will resume today the discussion over the draft law in preliminary stage to start the development process in Suez Canal area. We shall provide Suez Canal with the logistic services which would rise the transit fees in the canal from US$80 for each container to US$500. The Minister said the ships that pass through the Suez Canal in a year are about 9.206, so we need to maximize the benefits from these areas. The minister also pointed that there are new 9 real estate projects with Partnership between the public and the private sectors (PPP) submitted to the ministry. He also referred that Egypt is a very attractive place to allure investors for it is a large market having 90 million of population, good climate alongside the untapped areas which amount to 93% of country's total space and needed to be utilized. "Above all, the location of Egypt like Napoleon Bonaparte said before 'Yes, there is only one Egypt.;" The minister said The Egyptian Housing Ministry has a clear well-determined vision for the future of Egypt up to 2052. It has a national strategic development plan targeting the geographical redistribution for the country as there are 22% out of the total population of 90 million intensive in Cairo. The Minister also highlighted the ministry's national development plans in Sinai, Suez Canal and Ain Sokhna, the Eastern and Western deserts along with industrial areas such as the 10th of Ramadan City. The Ministry also targets developing the ports and coasts of the Red Sea as it plans to establish 13 resorts in those areas to increase the tourism flow. The Ministry is also planning to transform Safaga a center for the mineral industries, he added. Wafiq also pointed that the Ministry is targeting the establishment of the New El Alamein City in which the estimated number of population would reach 2 million. He said there are a ministerial meeting is being held today to discuss the developments of New El Alamein City project. Wafiq also emphasized on the importance of amending the mortgage law in order for alluring more investments for the country's real estate sector. The Ministry's national strategic scheme includes the establishment of 44 new cities. For Ismaila development process, the minister said; "We are working to give a push to the Valley of Technology Project in Ismailia." H.E Wafiq also explained that the most important element now is the political will to push the development process in new untapped areas to make use of new frontiers. Many regions across the country are waiting for the investors to proceed injecting investments and develop them.
