Walid Abbas reviews the real estate investment map for urban development projects during the Cityscape Egypt 2023 exhibition

In his role as the Vice President of the New Urban Communities Authority، Walid Abbas expressed his delight with the success evident at the Cityscape exhibition. He described it as a major and influential platform that brings together a substantial number of government and private sector representatives، contributing to the development of the Egyptian real estate sector. 

Abbas stressed that the Ministry of Housing plays a major role in drawing the real estate map of the Arab Republic of Egypt and supporting the economy through establishing and establishing new cities. He reviewed the Ministry’s package of measures to attract investment through the multiplicity of opportunities and the diversity of allocation mechanisms، as well as indicators of investment support and its reflection on the real estate market، and the procedures that have been implemented. The Egyptian government aims to confront potential risks in the Egyptian real estate market.

Shaping the real estate landscape 

Abbas emphasized the pivotal role of the Ministry of Housing in shaping the real estate landscape of Egypt and bolstering the economy by initiating and developing new cities. He examined the Ministry's comprehensive set of strategies aimed at attracting investments، including a range of opportunities and diverse allocation methods. Moreover، he discussed the investment support metrics and how they influence the real estate market، along with the implemented procedures. The Egyptian government's objective is to proactively address potential risks within the Egyptian real estate market. 

He further explained that there were 629 requests from investors for land purchases in dollars، totaling 1،089 acres، in the months of August and September 2023. He also highlighted that the first nine months of 2023 experienced a substantial surge in demand for investment opportunities، with a 42% increase compared to the corresponding period in the previous year. He underscored the government's intention to present several investment prospects in new cities، with 201 opportunities scheduled for the final quarter of 2023 and an additional 1،029 opportunities planned for the year 2024.

Real estate investment map 

Furthermore، he provided an overview of the real estate investment map pertaining to urban development projects and fourth-generation cities. Currently، Egypt boasts a total of 39 fourth-generation cities، with New Alamein City taking the lead. New Alamein City is an international financial and tourism hub while also serving as a center for scientific research. 

Abbas reaffirmed that the cumulative investment in new cities has now reached an impressive 705 billion pounds. This figure includes a substantial investment of 163 billion pounds in the New Administrative Capital. These achievements are attributed to several factors that make investing in Egypt highly attractive. These factors encompass a robust infrastructure، an intelligent transportation network connecting all regions of the country، readily available lands and infrastructure for development، competitive pricing compared to neighboring nations، a skilled workforce، growing annual housing demand، and a wide array of investment opportunities spanning the tourism، real estate، gas، and oil sectors. 

He highlighted the various incentives and support mechanisms that the government offers to investors in order to bolster the Egyptian real estate market. Among the key incentives are extensions for project implementation، allowing for an additional 20% of the originally allocated timeframe. Also، developers and investors are given the opportunity to qualify for citizenship by participating in projects and making real estate purchases in US dollars. Additionally، the government is considering an 80% project completion threshold as a standard for deeming a project implemented، contingent on the full utilization of provided facilities.

He further clarified that the government permits an increase in the exploitation factor by 10% for plots of land engaged in comprehensive urban activities. Besides، the percentage of service lands within such projects can be expanded from 12% to 15% of the total project land area. Moreover، industrial developers are granted the flexibility to plan and subdivide industrial lands، with the possibility of utilizing up to 75% of the project's land area for industrial purposes.

Reducing administrative expenses 

He added that the fixed discount rate for participation projects utilizing the in-kind and cash share system stands at 16%. Also، the government has reduced the interest rate on the installments to 10% instead of the Central Bank interest rate for a duration of two years. This includes a reduction in administrative expenses from 1% to 0.5%، with the option to pay them in installments over a year at a rate of 50% of their total value. In addition to that، there is a 50% reduction in the bonus applicable for increasing the construction percentage and the government has reduced the fees to 1%، down from the previous 2% according to the Ministry of Finance instructions.

The twelfth edition of Cityscape Egypt، the largest and most significant real estate exhibition in Egypt and Africa، commenced its activities today. The first day of the exhibition saw enthusiastic participation from prominent real estate firms in Egypt and around the globe، along with a substantial number of investors، real estate developers، experts، and visitors with a keen interest in the real estate sector. This event is organized by Informa Markets and held under the auspices of the Ministry of Housing، Utilities، and New Urban Communities Authority. 

Besides، the exhibition، the twelfth edition features the Cityscape Talks platform، which serves as a forum for discussions among experts from both the public and private sectors to address the sector's most critical developments.