Egypt revives dazzling plan of new desert capital

12-12-2017
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Daily Dispatch
Source

IN EGYPT’S eastern desert, roads are being carved across vast expanses of sand where the government is building a new administrative capital, a long-cherished project that has failed in the past.

The city will be complete with luxury hotels, upscale residential districts, a modern airport and a 345m tower, touted as Africa’s tallest.

The work is being carried out about 45km east of Cairo, between roads connecting the metropolis to the canal city of Suez and the Red Sea resort town of Ain Sokhna.

Workers are building a district to house a new presidential palace, parliament, 32 ministries and foreign embassies.

“I work more than 12 hours a day on this useless construction site,” complained one labourer.

The project, seen as expensive and not a priority for Egyptians, has been hard to sell, especially given past failures.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in 2015 announced the project to build a new capital, expected to cost some $45-billion (R614-billion) and to be completed by 2022.

The cost has angered many in a country with a crisis-hit economy.

The first phase of construction was officially launched in October, with the new capital aiming to expand to 170m² and house more than six million people.

For the authorities, the project is a necessity due to Cairo’s gradual decay and congestion.

With its 18 million inhabitants and constant traffic gridlock, Greater Cairo is expected to see its population bulge to 40 million by 2050, according to official figures.

To carry out the project, the government is focusing on key Egyptian private companies. — AFP