{"id":146481,"date":"2023-05-03T11:13:03","date_gmt":"2023-05-03T09:13:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/?p=146481"},"modified":"2023-08-24T13:55:42","modified_gmt":"2023-08-24T11:55:42","slug":"egypts-new-futuristic-capital","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/en\/egypts-new-futuristic-capital","title":{"rendered":"Egypt: the birth of a futuristic new capital"},"content":{"rendered":"

A mega-city in the middle of a desert plain: in 2015, Egypt embarked on a gigantic project to build its New Capital, forty-five kilometres east of Cairo. Eight years on, construction is stretching over 270 square kilometres, halfway between the historic capital and the port city of Suez. This New capital<\/strong>The project, estimated at 60 billion dollars, involves the development of 21 residential districts, as well as 25 districts dedicated to economic or government activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Starting this year, a large part of the government will begin its slow migration from Cairo<\/strong>. Already, the unthinkable is taking shape, in the middle of the desert: a huge park, artificial lakes, nearly 2,000 educational institutions, a technological innovation park, nearly 700 hospitals and clinics, more than 1,000 mosques and churches, a 90,000-seat stadium, a number of hotels <\/strong>with a total of 40,000 rooms. In addition, there is an ultra-modern infrastructure: solar farms, a electric train line to Cairo<\/strong>and a new international airport<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Decongesting Cairo<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The project is based on the need to relieve congestion in today's capital, with its incessant urban traffic and ageing buildings that are costly to renovate. With more than 21 million inhabitants<\/strong>Cairo is home to a fifth of Egypt's population, which is itself growing by more than a million people every year. But this is not a recent development. Since the 70s, Egypt has embarked on a new towns programme <\/strong>which aimed to entertain the capital's population by attracting them to more modern cities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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View of the new capital (photo: Administrative Capital For Urban Development)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In 2018, as the country's population reached 100 million, the government announced a fourth generation of new cities, based on environmentally-friendly technologies and intelligent public services. These will be complemented by green spaces and cutting-edge educational infrastructure, helping to attract a young, educated population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is how the second fourth-generation city came into being, New Alamein<\/strong>located on the coast of the Mediterranean, is currently being developed at a cost of 14 billion dollars, with the aim of making it a world-class tourist destination. urban centre with 3 million inhabitants<\/strong>well positioned in the tourism and education sectors. All in all, by September 2021, no fewer than 37 new towns <\/strong>were being planned or developed, while 24 existing towns were entering the renovation phase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the New capital <\/strong>However, the ambitions turned out to be much greater: the project, dear to the heart of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, is loaded with symbolism. In the 2000s, Egypt turned to the urban planners of Dubai <\/strong>to design the project. This partnership was soon disrupted by disputes over financial control and did not last very long. The Egyptian army took control of the project, and by 2016 it was the China <\/strong>which is emerging as Egypt's favourite partner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n