Economist Mokhtar Al-Sharif said that the supply of residential units is still less than the demand in the Egyptian market. He pointed out that there are 750,000 young men getting married annually who need housing units. He added—during the Economic Real Estate and Urban Development Conference to Achieve the Egypt 2030 Vision for Sustainability organised by Al Thiqa Real Estate Company—that the old laws and inherited culture encouraged Egyptians to buy properties as a kind of savings for their children. Establishing new urban communities and cities—especially in the desert—as well as benefitting from Egypt's shores, is important, he noted. He pointed out that there are 1.2 million unlicensed real estate properties in cities, which will cause a problem that has to be dealt with immediately and rapidly. The parliament and the civil community must cooperate to reach practical solutions to solve the problems of the Egyptian street—the unlicensed buildings being one of them. He stressed on the importance of supporting the economy and green construction through using new and renewable energies. Majed Sultan, a former information technology advisor to the Minister of Transport, said during the conference that the application of the one-stop shop system requires a unified supreme authority for its implementation. He added that the administrative corruption is caused by legislation and laws, especially since laws include exceptions in some of its items. Sultan said that the telecommunications sector is an essential element of any investment in Egypt. The activation of the one-stop shop system requires the intervention of the political leadership of the country, as letting the service provider and service receiver deal face-to-face opens the door for the continuation of corruption, according to Sultan. He added that the service provider and receiver should be separated by automating the services. Sultan stressed on the importance of the availability of comprehensive data and information to serve the investment in its various fields in order to serve the national economy base.
