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Home , Arish, Hurghada, Port Fuad, Port Said, Port Said Governorate

Economy

Suez Canal Development Project: 's Gate to the Future

President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi With the Egyptian children around him, when he gave go ahead to implement the East Said project

On November 27, 2015, President Ab- Egyptians’ will to successfully address del-Fattah el-Sissi inaugurated the initial the challenges of careful planning and phase of the East project. This speedy implementation of massive in- was part of a strategy initiated by the vestment projects, in spite of the state of digging of the New Canal (NSC), instability and turmoil imposed on the already completed within one year on Middle East and North Africa and the August 6, 2015. This was followed by unrelenting attempts by certain interna- steps to dig out a 9-km-long branch tional and regional powers to destabilize channel East of Port-Said from among Egypt. dozens of projects for the development In a suggestive gesture by President el of the zone. -Sissi, as he was giving a go-ahead to This project is the main pillar of in- launch the new phase of the East Port vestment, on which Egypt pins hopes to Said project, he insisted to have around yield returns to address public budget him on the podium a galaxy of Egypt’s deficit, reduce unemployment and in- children, including siblings of martyrs, crease growth rate. This would positively signifying Egypt’s recognition of the role reflect on the improvement of the stan- of young generations in building its fu- dard of living for various social groups in ture. Egypt. Above all, this would foster East Port Said Development Project:

(3) Goals, Location and Implementation The industrial estate will house iron Plans: and steel and complimentary industries The project aims to make maximum serving the port as well as maritime in- use of the expanse of land available east dustries. of the Suez Canal and to create an eco- The one million- population city, nomic, urban development extension to which serves mainly as an urban exten- the Canal’s three main cities reflecting sion to , will com- positively on the overall development of prise areas for urban real-estate develop- the entire area. According to law, the ment , as well as maritime, eco-tourism Suez Canal zone extending over 466 facilities. The zone infrastructure has the sq.km is an economic zone of a special potential for a thriving urban community nature. The completion on August 6, in the East Port Said zone. 2015 marked the actual beginning of the Many roads and highways lead to the project that was designed so as to turn location, including el--al-Qantara the Suez Canal from simply a waterway road, al-Qantara Sharq at-Tafri’a road into an integrated development zone. and . Location and Implantation Plans: Main Component As an integrated project, it comprises of the project the following facilities covering a total Port Said Zone area of 70,549 feddans: Currently underway, this project com- A one-million population city prises the construction of an extension to ( 29,513,3 feddans); Port-Said city east of the Suez Canal An industrial estate (23,574 feddans) (port-city), linking it with a road and tun- and Sharq at-Tafri’a Port ( 17,159.6 nel network, a major logistics, residential feddans and trade zone, by building a sea port Geographically, the one-million popu- with 5-km.-long and 500-m.-wide docks. lation city lies on the northern entrance These include miscellaneous 5-km.-long of Suez Canal, bounded by the Mediter- and 400-500m.-wide docks as a first ranean Sea to the north, the Suez Canal phase a 950m.-diameter turnaround area branch to the west, Rummana and Ba- and a 3 km.-long and 500-m.-wide and loozha towns to the east and agricultural 18.5 m.-deep navigation channel. This hinterland and al-Qantara town to south. would allow ships to enter directly the Sharq at-Tafri’a Port lies on northeast- East Port Said port without having to ern entrance of Suez Canal south branch, wait for ships transiting the Suez Canal a meeting-point for the three , to pass by. The project also comprises a world trade traffic between the east and 9 km.-long and 250m.-wide approach west and a magnet for ships transiting the channel, a 40 million-sq m.-industrial Suez Canal. Development of this area is area, including 16 million sq.m. as a first underpinned by the East Port-Said port priority, in addition to a factory zone, an zone, a container handling dock, a ship industrial estate management that con- bunkering station (60 per cent com- tains a service area, a conference center, pleted), and a multi-cargo, dry and agri- management premises, a sales center and cultural bulk port. In addition, a separate a hotel. Included will be also a residen- 9- km- long access canal is being exca- tial area covering 4 million sq. m. with vated for the northern entrance of the in- total 10,000 units as a first phase to ac- bound logistics storage zone. commodate 50,000 engineers, techni-

(4) cians and workers. Upon completion, the being upgraded at a length of 210 km, area is expected to house 150,000 dwell- while a number of tunnels are being dug ers. In addition, the site will comprise a out north of Ismailia at km 73 milestone 30 1million sq. m. logistics area dedi- under the scale, cated to port and industrial estate ser- thus creating a traffic corridor starting vices and an 80 million sq.m- aqua cul- from the heart of up to Sinai sea- ture area that is expected to yield 55,000 port. Additionally, a culvert will be dug tons of fish a day, providing employment out underneath the Suez Canal in for 7,000 citizens Serabium area to provide irrigation water To serve this project, plans are under- necessary for agricultural development in way to upgrade Port Said- Sharm el- the area east of the Canal. Another cul- Sheikh road, with a length of 500 km and vert will be built to pass waste water to Ismailia-Port Said road, with a length from al-Mahsama waste water canal that of 104 km. In addition, the June 30 Cor- was previously wasted away into at- ridor will be built, to start from the inter- Timssah lagoon in large quantities reach- national coastal road up to km 90 on Is- ing to 1.25 million c.m. a day. mailia-Cairo desert road with a length of As-Sokhna Port 102 km. Development Project Al-Galala town will be built on top of Recently, articles of association have Mount al-Galala al- Bahariyya at a been signed both chairmen of the Suez height of 700 m from sea level. The Canal Authority and the town, stretching over 17,000 feddans, Authority to incorporate a joint stock comprises a housing, tourist and service company between the Public Authority area, including a world-class tourist re- for the Development of the Suez Canal sort called al-Galala. Zone on the one hand and Dubai Ports Moreover, a number of tunnels are international and Soenker Bunkering on being built underneath the Suez Canal in the other. This is the starting-point for south Port Said area at km 19 milestone. upgrading as-Sokhna Port as part of the These include three 4km-long and 1, 5 Suez Canal Zone Development master m.-wide vehicular and one 7km-long and plan. The agreement included a settle- 11.5 m.-wide railway tunnel. ment of all outstanding problems among Ismailia-al-Qantara all parties concerned. The company plans Corridor to build a new dock similar to the exist- This project comprises the construc- ing liquid bulk one, in order to facilitate tion of the new city of Ismailia ( already the handling of all kinds of oil, gas and initiated) that would have a total of petrochemical products. The new dock is 55.000 residential units on an area of scheduled to be completed within one 5,800 feddans, fully equipped with utili- year. According to the articles of associa- ties, services and administrative facili- tion, the Public Authority for the Devel- ties. This will be the first Egyptian city opment of the Suez Canal Zone will hold that is sensitive to people with special 60 per cent of the new company’s equity, needs. In addition, the project will in- while the other two companies will hold clude an industrial estate in al-Qantara 20 per cent each. The agreement involves west and technology part east of Is- settlement and full repayment, before mailia. signing, of all dues owed to the Govern- Currently, the Ismailia- al-Oaja road is ment of Egypt by both companies. This

(5) would ensure the settlement of all out- includes reclaimed land, drilled water standing problem in both East Port-Said wells, irrigation channels and facilities and as-Sokhna ports and Egypt’s needs and housing units. As a pilot, the Fara- of oil and gas product are made avail- fra Oasis has been already imple- able. mented, with 1,500 residential units. Presidential messages in the inaugural Phase I of the national road network ceremony: covering 5,000 km has been completed The speedy implementation of this, and Phase II was initiated, thus better together with a large number of similar connecting Egypt’s cities and gover- major projects across Egypt is indeed a norates, apart from linking industrial new window of hope for Egyptians, re- estates, airports and sea-ports, More futing all calls of despair propagated by than three airports have been com- narrow-minded cynics that aim to dis- pleted but not yet publicized , courage all attempts at progress and rem- The challenge of combating corrup- edy. It goes without saying that Egypt is tion. actively forging its way forward in spite The challenge of creating an enabling of difficulties of financing and black investment climate and activating law, propaganda pressures. And other hurdles. through plans to overcome energy cri- In his inaugural speech at the cere- sis for factories. mony, President Sissi was, as usual, keen The challenge of combating terrorism to send a number of messages. Salient of that is trying to obstruct our progress. these was the tone of confidence based The challenge of countering foreign on a full conviction that the project, conspiracies against Egypt. which would normally take 10-15 years In the same vein, the President called to complete, will be completed within a on the media to “ implant hope into the single year. hearts of people.” In spite of all hard- Based on the past successful experi- ships, the state of Egypt has managed ence of the New Suez Canal, this reflects this year to repay its foreign debt liabili- the President’s trust in the capacity and ties, including US Dollar 2.4 billion to resolve of the implementing agencies, Club, in addition to down payments together with a firm will to make use of US Dollar 2.7 billion for the con- rather then lose opportunity. tracted power stations. Meanwhile, a One message the President was keen contract was signed with to build to convey was that all projects will be a nuclear power plant in ad-Dhab’a and initiated only after in-depth and exhaus- mobilizing the construction site. Also tive studies have made and all necessary work is on full swing in building modern equipment, plant and staff put in place. grain silos, starting agricultural expan- Moreover, the President pointed out a sion. This is supported by a monetary number of challenges facing the progress policy that ensures stabilization of the of building, development and stability: Egyptian pound exchange rate against Economically, such projects need huge other currencies and a clear-cut invest- financing that should be made avail- ment law. able in advance. Of these, the Presi- These are some features of the efforts dent cited the one million and one half that led the World Bank to anticipate a - feddan project, through which the growth rate of five per cent for Egypt in state plans to introduce a new model of 2016. modern Egyptian countryside. This

(6) Tourism

With its mild weather, sunshine almost all The city was founded in the early 20th cen- the year round, its sprawling beaches, sunshine tury. Until a few years ago, it was a small fish- and exquisite coral reefs, the Red Sea city of ing village but since the 1980s has been con- Hurghada is indeed one of the most out- tinually enlarged by Egyptian and foreign in- standing tourist cities in Egypt and the world vestors to become the leading coastal resort on and a major tourist hub for Thousands of do- the Red Sea. Holiday villages and hotels pro- mestic and foreign tourists. Its natural islands vide aquatic sport facilities for sailboarders, make up a virgin environment for a variety of yachtsmen, scuba divers and snorkelers. rare flora and fauna, offering a perfect setting Hurghada is known for its water sports activi- for enjoying recreational sports such as land ties, nightlife and warm weather. Daily tem- hunting and fishing. Major attractions nearby perature hovers round 30 °C (86 °F) most of the city include Souma Bay, and the year. Numerous Europeans spend their . The city shops offer a variety Christmas and New Year holidays in the city, of souvenirs, including artifacts, copper cups mainly Germans, Russians and Italians. and Pharoanic paintings. Hurghada stretches for about 36 km along The city’s economy is mainly based on the seashore and it does not reach far into the tourism and complementary activities, which surrounding desert. Hurghada is divided into are also the major means of livelihood for the three parts: population. Downtown (El Dahhar) is the old part; Tourists spend their time in the city by day Saqqala is the city center. swimming, basking in the sun on the Red Sea El Mamsha (the Walkway) is the modern beach or . At night, they enjoy their part. time at night clubs, especially in El-Gouna. Saqqala is the relatively modest hotel quar-

(7) ter. Dahhar is where the town's largest bazaar, Hurghada was granted the prize of the Best the post office and the long-distance sta- Arab Tourist Destination, 2015 in a poll con- tion are situated. ducted by the Arab Tourist Media Center. Due The city is served by the Hurghada Interna- to its clear distinction, in terms of tourist infra- tional Airport with scheduled passenger traffic structure and projects and availability of ser- connecting to Cairo and directly with several vices needed by tourists, the city was selected cities in . The airport has undergone for this prize from among nominated 15 tourist renovations to accommodate rising traffic. destinations. After fierce competition in the final stage of the competition that started in Tourism November 2014, the city won the prize. It is Although a town in its own right worthy of note that Dubai won this prize in Hurghada’s current major industry is foreign 2012, followed by Sharja in 2013 and Salala in and domestic tourism, owing to its dramatic 2014. landscape, year-round dry and temperate cli- mate and long stretches of natural beaches. Its Natural landmarks and resorts: waters are clear and calm for most of the year Hurghada houses a variety of natural, envi- and have become popular for various water ronmental landmarks sites as well as several sports, particularly recreational Islamic and Coptic sites. and snorkeling. Dive sites around Abu Ramada Island, Natural landmarks: Giftun Kebir and Giftun Soraya are popular. Souma Bay: Tourists also visit shipwrecks such as El-Mina A tourist resort lying 6 km away from the or the Rosalie Moller. northern edge of Hurghada. The resort covers Hurghada has a subtropical-desert climate an area of 13 million m2. and contains a vari- (Köppen climate classification: BWh), with ety of hotels, villas and sporting, therapeutic mild-warm winters and hot to very hot sum- and recreational facilities with an urban plan- mers. Temperatures in the period December– ning and architectural design that integrate January–February are warm, while November, with the nature of the surrounding area with a March and April are comfortably warm. May European touch. Hotels include Palm Royale and October are hot and the period from June , La Residence des Cascades, Rob- to September is very hot. The average annual inson Club, Sheraton (Kempinski) and Carib- temperature of the sea is 24 °C (75 °F), rang- bean World Resort Soma Bay. There is a golf ing from 21 °C (70 °F) in February and March course. The resort won the Ministry of Tour- to 28 °C (82 °F) in August. ism’s certificate of merit for its role in enrich- ing Egypt’s tourist sector. The recognition was Hurghada: The best Arab tourist given on the sidelines of the International destination. 2015: Tourism Day under the slogan “One billion Due to its unparalleled tourist advantages, tourists: One billion job opportunities”.

(8) pany, this resort covers an area of 32 million m2. and contains 1530 hotel rooms, 679 resi- dential units with more 6,000 rooms and 6,000 units expected to be completed in future. The resort also contains an open-air theater, where musical concerts by top singers are performed and attended by thousands of fans.

Sand dunes A centerpiece of art created in March 1997 on an area of about 55,000 m2. in el-Gouna desert, consisting of 89 sand dunes and 89 dual low-lying spiraling pits of varying sizes with a 30m. diameter lake. Makadi Bay The Tourist Resort is located 35 km south Magaweesh resort of Hurghada. With its year-round shining sun It is located 7.5 km south of Hurghada, and vast beach of white sand, Makadi Bay is a Magaweesh island is known for its fine sand perfect resort for vacationing, especially sea beaches and quiet virgin waters. Covering an voyages as it contains a select group of luxury area of 850,000 m2, Magaweesh tourist village hotels, rest-houses and restaurants that offer is the oldest in Hurghada and offers several top-level services , including Asian, French tourist and recreational activities such as div- and Italian dishes. ing, surfing and horse-riding.

Coral Reef: El-Giftun This diving site contains dense coral reef It is located 11 km away from Hurghada jungles and a variety of fishes, including rare with an area of more than 16 km2, El-Giftun is hammer shark, jack fish, tuna, and barracuda. the most thriving tourist site in Hurghada and Reefs in this area make up two coral towers a major site for deep and surface diving. It is that decorate the water surface. The wadi also a principal source of income for Red Sea (valley) between both towers is about 16 m- natural reserves and the only reserve, where deep, making it a favorite site for both amateur tourists are allowed access. It contains distinct and seasoned divers. eco-systems, diverse plant and a high variety of coral reefs. It is habitat for large numbers of Abu Ramada: rare sea animals and birds liable to extinction. It is called the aquarium. This site is dis- On the northern and southern areas, turtles, tinct for its relatively shallow and much flat especially eagle-eyed, nestle. waters. The site abounds in wonderful `aquatic life, including jack fish, barracuda, and coral Abu-Minqar Island reef shark small tuna. This island dates back to the pre-historic Eocene era or at least 33 million years. The Al-Fanadeer: island is characteristic for its thick rocks and Narrow and quiet reefs, accessible from al- rare geological formations. The island takes its Gouna. It is ideal practicing for both deep div- name, which means in “peck-shaped”, ing and amateur diving. The eastern part of al- from its general form. as its eastern edge is Fanadeer is the preference for divers as it is sand headland extending into the sea, almost protected by thin arcade of coral reefs that similar to a bird’s peck. Although the island is abound in a variety of fish, including pipe- relatively small in size, it is one of the most fish, stone-fish, and sea scorpion fish, hammer ecologically significant islands in north Red fish, frog-fish, tuna, and jack fish. Sea due to abundance of coral reefs there. Many parts of the island are used for diving, Sahl Hasheesh resort swimming and fishing. In addition, the island Run by the Egyptian Tourist Resort Com- serves as a rest area for several species of mi-

(9) gratory birds such as sea-gulls and herons. The island, which lies within Elba North nature reserve that comprises also Mount Elba, 3 km east of Hurghada. The island is the richest in mangroves and other dense saline plants that cover about one quarter of its size of 30 hec- tares. In some parts, each hectare has at least 400 full-grown trees, with some rising more than 5 m.

Shadwan Island It is known also as Shaker Island, Shadwan has a coral reef island that abounds in many kinds of fish, including white and grey-fin ronmental impact reports for tourist projects reef sharks and eagle-pecked turtles, in addi- implemented on the Red Sea shore and settles tion to groups of fine dolphins. disputes over marine environment problems arising between the Egyptian Environmental Wadi al-Hammamat (valley of baths) Affairs Authority and tourist facility owners. It is located 35 km from Hurghada. It is the In 2015, the was renovated. bed of an ancient dried river, which is now a winding road running across the Eastern De- Islamic landmarks sert. It was used as a trade route in medieval The Sea-port Mosque times. Remains of these times can be still seen Built on an area of 7000 m2, this mosque in the quarries on the north side of the road was inaugurated in January 2013. It is the larg- and ruins of laborers’ cottages. On the south est mosque in the and has side, there still remain hundreds of hieroglyph- a unique design that makes a tourist destina- ics panels, indicative of the missions sent by tion worthy of visit. Pharoahs. Coptic landmarks The Aquarium: Marine Life Station Anba Antonius Monastery The National Institute of Museum Marine This monastery was named after Life (The Grand Aquarium) was built in Archbishop Antonius, who lived in the 14th 1927 and officially inaugurated the next year. Century AD and is considered by Egyptian The Institute is one of the oldest institutes Copts as the first monk in the world and father specialized in oceanology in the Middle East. of all monks. It contains a collection of the North Hurtghada was selected as the seat of rarest and most exquisite Coptic murals as the Institute due to its detachment from urban well as a large library containing 143 manu- areas and abundance of coral reefs and model scripts and hundreds of books in many marine environment. The museum contains branches of knowledge. several collections of embalmed fish from the Red Sea and the , including mer- Urban development maids, dolphins, sharks and turtles. It also con- Hurghada has undergone a major scheme tains glass aquaria for live fish. The institute of urban development. Main themes of such houses 12 research laboratories for oceanology development include the conservation of his- specializations, in addition to a research boat torical heritage of the old city during the proc- named after the renowned Egyptian - ess of upgrading and renovation. Soft land- international oceanologist Hamed Gohar. The scaping is to be made by a specialized com- Institute’s library is the oldest specialized in pany. All building fronts are to be painted in a marine environment and fisheries in the Mid- uniform color. The city hinterland is to be in- dle East and conations treasures of references corporated into current urban mass, thus en- and science map[s of high value. The institute suring proper urban zoning, sustainable devel- is dedicated to solving problems of surround- opment and preservation of the tourist nature ing marine environment. It also provides envi- of the city of Hurghada.

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