Egypt's Cabinet approved Wednesday an amendment to the New Urban Communities Authority’s (NUCA) law. This change in the law would allow the Housing Ministry to have full authority over the lands and utilities it provides to private sector companies, according to Al-Borsa news website.
The amendmets came as the Housing Ministry had concluded the final draft of the contract to be signed with Emirati Arabtec for the construction of one million housing units, eight months after both parties signed an initial protocol for the project, ministry sources told the newspaper Al-Shorouk.
The proposed draft has been sent to the company in the United Arab Emirates and the ministry is waiting for a response, according to the sources.
The Engineering Authority of the Armed Forces (EAAF) signed a protocol with Arabtec in March 2014 for the construction of one million housing units distributed among 13 areas across Egypt, for a total cost of US$40 billion. The presidency decided later in 2014, however, to replace the EAAF with the Housing Ministry.
EAAF chief Kamel al-Wazeer told Al-Masry Al-Youm on 1 March that the project was suspended due to disagreements with Arabtec over terms related to the workforce and materials involved in the project. Conversely, Reuters reported Tuesday that Arabtec’s representatives were planning to meet with Egyptian officials on Wednesday to resume negotiations over the project that targets low- and middle-income citizens.
According to Al-Shorouk, both sides agreed that the ministry will obtain, rather than payment, a share of the housing units that make up the value of lands and relevant utilities provided to the company as part of the project.
