Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is set to establish a state land protection authority following impending parliamentary elections, sources told Al-Masry Al-Youm.
The move will come via presidential decree.
The authority's mandate will unite all territories affiliated with the Ministries of Agriculture, Population, Tourism and Regional Development, Water Resources and Irrigation and other government entities related to state lands, according to the sources.
"It is determined that the authority will use satellite photos to track incursions as soon as they appear, and to immediately remove them, in addition to establishing an administration for the organization's data and documents, which would maintain the maps, create a database for government lands, and employ land use experts to modernize them for development in regions targeted on the national map for various uses," the sources said.
The same sources asserted the authority will not impinge upon ministerial rights.
"Its role will be to delineate the areas and sites that related ministries will work with, tracking the work of these organizations to ensure compliance with general land use requirements, as well as overseeing the execution of contracts among state land beneficiaries for all purposes of comprehensive development."
