With the theme of "Mortgage Development Partners," Egypt's second conference of "Partnership for Development" initiative starts today, under the auspices of the country's regulator, the Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority (EFSA) and the Mortgage Finance Fund (MFF). The conference, organized by Excellent Communications, discusses partnership mechanisms between the government and the private sector to bolster Egypt's mortgage sector to reflect positively on social and economic aspects. Leading officials from the Egyptian Federation for Construction and Building Contractors, banks, mortgage firms and real estate developers are participating in the upcoming conference, the statement read. During the conference, head of the EFSA Sherif Samy is set to discuss with participants recently approved legislation and its impact on reviving the mortgage sector. Egypt's market regulator will also review the key system for the first federation of all entities working in the mortgage market, and its role in supporting the mortgage sector. Further, the EFSA will highlight the role of mortgage finance funds in filling the gap in housing lending. Indicators have shown positive growth prospects for Egypt's real estate sector in light of upcoming implementation of a number of major projects, including the new administrative capital, launched at the Egypt Economic Development Conference held in Sharm el-Sheik last month, in addition to the 1 million housing unit project. From her side, Dina Abdel Fattah, Secretary-General of " Partnership Development" Initiative, noted that there will be a round table that is set to include the main players in the real estate finance sector. The conference will also display the means to activate partnerships between governmental bodies related to mortgage systems and the private sector represented in banks, with the aim of providing affordable housing units for all social classes. It will further analyze and assess the Central Bank of Egypt's 10-billion pounds initiative launched in February 2013 to stimulate the mortgage sector. The CBE's initiative was intended to provide chances to low and average-income individuals to acquire housing units, under Mortgage Finance Fund regulations, at 7 and 8 percent interest, respectively. Egypt's real estate sector is a main contributor to its economic growth, affecting more than 90 industries.
