Next edition of Cityscape Egypt will be the largest ever with over 23 percent growth and a marked increase in overseas participation. As Africa celebrates its position as the world's second largest destination for global foreign investment,Egypt is witnessing a surge in interest from international developers and investors looking to benefit from real estate opportunities with medium to long term capital growth and resale potential. The fifth edition of Cityscape Egypt, the country's largest property event is still two months away from opening its doors,yet almost 20 per cent of exhibitorsare from outside Egypt – a figure that has already doubled since the 2014 event. Taking place on 16 - 19 September 2015 at the Cairo International Convention Centre, the exhibition is now in its strongest position since launching back in 2010, announcing 23 per cent overall growth since 2014 and a significant influx of participants from the UAE in particular. Ayman Sami, Country Head at the investment management giant JLL Egypt and forthcoming exhibitor at Cityscape Egypt is confident in the growth path that Egypt is following, and sees other verticals heading in the same direction. "The primary residential real estate market in Egypt remained strong throughout the past three years with some developments witnessing a 30 per cent YOY increase in selling prices. As confidence returns to the market we are now seeing that Hotels, Retail and Offices are beginning to follow suit. The Egyptian market has strong fundamentals and property ownership is part of each and every household's culture, partially due to the fact that it has historically outperformed many other types of Capital investments making it a primary driver for the continuous strong demand." With 17.1 per cent of global foreign investment driven solely into Africain 2014, the progressive continent nowsits comfortably as the second largest global region for FDI after Asia Pacific. With a wave of government reforms in place and the positive effects of this year's Egypt Economic Summit supporting its advancement, Egyptitself ranks first in the list for FDI amongst African countries and continues to attractlarge-scale investments from the GCC – particularly the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Real estate, hospitality and construction comprise the largest share of foreign direct investment overall, with major driversincluding an ambitious project that will add capacity to Cairo's metro system,the large-scale construction of essential new port facilities andthe high profile expansion of the Suez Canal. In line with overseas interest in real estate as a whole, Cityscape Egypt participants from the UAE tripled last year, while GCC visitors represented an increase of 40 per cent – testament to both the activity and confidence that is resurging in the Egyptian economies. Ian Albert, Regional Director of Colliers International the Associate Conference Sponsor of the event explains "With confidence in the economy returning, the largest population in the Arab world, demand for housing remaining high at all income levels and tourism growing again, Cityscape Egypt provides ideal knowledge exchange and networking. Following our appointment as advisors on a number of projects, we are seeing Egypt's potential first-hand and look forward to interacting with key figures from government and business alike at this year's event." Among the new and returning exhibitors this year is a flurry of blue chip international property companies including Azizi Developments, Landmark Leisure, Qatari Diar and JLL. Regular participants include the likes of Palm Hills, Talaat Mostafa Group, Al Ahly for Real Estate and Taamir for Mortgage Finance Company Aloula who is once again Gold Sponsor of the event. Emaar Misr, one of the world's largest property developers will be exhibiting for the fourth consecutive year this September, and Chief Compliance Officer Nabil Amasha considers it a must-attend in the organisation's marketing calendar: "Cityscape Egypt is a unique event which has evolved to become the marketplace of the real estate industry in the country. We look forward to the annual event and the opportunity to showcase our latest developments directly to our customers and to network with our peers." Cityscape's exhibitions, conferences and seminars are the leading events that bring together key industry decision makers, international investors, developers, government and investment authorities, leading architects, designers, and consultants active in the design and construction of real estate.
