Engineer Sherif El-Sherbiny, Egypt’s Minister of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Communities, met with Kenya’s Minister of Lands, Housing, and Public Works, Alice Wahome, as well as the Kenyan Ambassador to Cairo, Fred Otta. The meeting, held on the fourth day of the 12th World Urban Forum, aimed to showcase Egypt’s urban development achievements and explore opportunities for collaboration between the two nations. Also present was Egyptian Ambassador to Nairobi, Wael Attia.
Minister El-Sherbiny welcomed Minister Wahome and her delegation to Egypt, highlighting the significance of the World Urban Forum’s return to Africa after over 20 years, since the first forum took place in Nairobi in 2002. El-Sherbiny emphasized Egypt’s commitment to sharing its urban development experience and knowledge with Kenya and other African nations.
He outlined the extensive expertise of Egyptian construction companies, consulting firms, and developers in executing diverse urban development projects across Africa and the Middle East, proposing joint workshops to define a framework for cooperation. El-Sherbiny also elaborated on Egypt’s “Housing for All Egyptians” initiative, launched by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, which has delivered affordable housing to citizens, particularly low-income groups. He shared that Egypt has built around 300,000 fully furnished replacement housing units for residents of unsafe areas, transforming these communities into modern, fully serviced urban areas.
Additionally, El-Sherbiny detailed the role of Egypt’s New Urban Communities Authority in establishing Fourth-Generation Cities, including New Administrative Capital, New Alamein, New Mansoura, and New Aswan, as well as expanding previous generations of cities. He explained how the authority has facilitated land allocation and created diverse investment opportunities across these cities.
Kenya’s Minister Wahome expressed admiration for Egypt’s substantial achievements in urban development and affirmed Kenya’s eagerness to deepen its collaboration with Egypt across various development sectors.