For the very first time Egypt participated in a huge pavilion, which included the Ministry of Housing, and the New Urban Communities Authority, and about 18 other major real estate development companies in the Egyptian market, in Cityscape Dubai— the world's largest networking exhibition, and conference on property development—on 2 October. The exhibition was held from 2 to 4 October at the Dubai World Trade Centre, UAE. The Egyptian pavilion was launched under the slogan ‘Invest in Egypt,' as the first initiative by the Egyptian government to export property [selling real estate property to foreigners and Egyptian expatriates in US dollars]. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai inaugurated the exhibition. The opening ceremony was attended by multiple leaders from the Ministry of Housing, and the New Urban Communities Authority. Despite the low number of participating companies, falling 30% less compared to previous years, the first day witnessed a high customer turnout at the Egyptian pavilion. During the exhibition, 30 real estate developers from around the world competed with one another to attract the attention of both investors and buyers, from around the globe, to take advantage of the strong investment opportunities they offer, led by participants from Egypt and Malta, with support from their government agencies, who were attracting visitors for citizenship access, in return for purchasing their property. Deputy Minister of Housing for National Projects Khaled Abbas, who headed the Egyptian official delegation at the exhibition, said that Egypt witnessed a remarkable transformation in the expansion of its real estate market, noting, "we are witnessing a strong growth in demand for real estate. As a result, the state has started to introduce new cities, with phenomenal real estate projects.” Developers from both the private and public sectors are looking to attract investors to the Egyptian real estate market, and at Cityscape Global they were showcasing unique investment opportunities, and emphasising the strength of the Egyptian market to international clients, elaborated Abbas. Egypt, the country of honour for this year's edition of the exhibition, was supported by the Egyptian Ministry of Housing, which in turn gathered over 15 companies from major real estate developer companies in its pavilion, to review the most prominent, and new projects in the country, such as the New Administrative Capital, New El Alamein, and New Mansoura. Ahmed Shalaby, CEO and managing director at Tatweer Misr, one of the participant companies, said that the presence of an Egyptian pavilion at the Cityscape Global 2018 Dubai, and the participation of the Ministry of Housing, was one of the most important gains and serious steps towards the property export, especially as that stride has been demanded by countless developers for years. Shalaby also pointed out that the first day witnessed a strong demand by customers, and the Egyptian pavilion attracted the attention of foreign customers due to its distinguished projects, and presentation. The exhibition is a good opportunity to exchange experiences between Egyptian, and foreign companies, he added. Participation in the exhibition is a prelude to a strong presence in numerous international events, thus accelerating towards attracting heads of local and foreign funds, noted Shalaby. Tatweer Misr exhibited its three projects: IL Monte Galala, Fouka Bay, and Bloomfields. Fathallah Fawzy head of the Construction Committee of the Egyptian Businessmen Association, said that Ministry of Housing's projects, launched through the very first participation in an Egyptian pavilion for years at Cityscape Global 2018 Dubai, attracted the attention of attendees and heads of Arab and foreign funds, from the exhibition's first. The projects were characterised by a high level of construction, and advantages, which were on an equal footing with the products offered by Dubai, and various major participating countries, stressed Fawzy. Moreover, Egyptian projects are defined by a greater advantage which contribute to increasing the opportunities of Egyptian real estate, in order to acquire the largest amount of capital, and the interest of foreign investment funds. The price per square metre of various Egyptian properties offered, whether by the Ministry of Housing or City Edge Developments ranged from $1,300 and $1,400 per metre while the minimum price per metre in real estate for other participating countries ranged from $4,000 to $5,000. Fawzy explained that the participation and excellence of the exhibits, the incentives recently adopted by the state, as well as the approval of granting of residence for foreigners in return for purchasing real estate, will contribute to the success of property export adopted by the Prime Minister and Minister of Housing Mostafa Madbouly. Sorouh Developments Company presented its latest three projects in the New Administrative Capital at Cityscape Global Dubai 2018. Two of them are new, according to Ahmed El Tayebi, the company's co-founder. El Tayebi noted that Sorouh is seeking to promote its projects in a manner that is worthy of active participation in the Egyptian pavilion, and to contribute towards enhancing, and developing the real estate market with other participating companies. Tabarak Developments is participating in the Cityscape Dubai Global conference for the very first time. Ali Al-Shorbani, chairman of Tabarak Developments, said that Cityscape Global is one of the strongest international exhibitions, and is a leading platform in the international real estate market, offering a strong opportunity to promote real estate investment in a confident manner. For her part, Mahitab Labib, marketing director of Tabarak Developments, said: “Tabarak's current marketing plan coincides with its participation in a series of strong international exhibitions, organised in Arab and foreign countries, with the approaching delivery dates of the 90 Avenue, and Capital East Residence projects to our customers.@
