A source familiar with the Housing Ministry’s Nile Corniche redevelopment plan said the value of unused riverfront land across Egypt has reached 500 billion Egyptian pounds ($10 billion) after an initial survey of assets and land, covering a total area of 3 million square meters.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said last month the government had finished surveying all land along the Nile Corniche to assess and utilize it “optimally” for the benefit of the state and citizens. He said some plots had been used as public parking lots, which did not fit their prime location.
The source, who requested anonymity, told Al Manassa, “The government won’t sell the land permanently. Rather, there will be partnerships with the private sector to develop a variety of projects.”
These projects would generate “huge” financial returns for the state in the near future, the source said, which “supports the state’s intention to increase private-sector investment and boost tourism revenues and the number of tourists.”
Land prices must be assessed before entering any partnerships with investors, because the valuation will determine the state’s share of project returns.
Most of the land will be allocated to tourism, hotel, residential, and administrative projects, in line with the state ownership policy document on partnering with the private sector, added the source.
Demolitions, backlash, and Gulf investor offers
Under the government plan, a new wave of demolitions will be carried out along the Corniche, similar to previous campaigns that began in October 2024 to remove all structures built on the Nile riverside. Those targeted included Cairo University faculty members’ club, Helwan University’s Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, the Floating Theater, Umm Kulthum Garden, river police facilities, and the clubs of the Administrative Prosecution Authority and State Council judges.
Earlier moves did not gain wide acceptance. At the time, MP Maha Abdel Nasser submitted an interpellation request to the prime minister, the higher education minister, and the culture minister over a decision she described as “a stark contradiction with the government’s slogans.” A number of artists also signed a statement appealing to the president not to demolish cultural institutions.
The government is studying proposals from investors from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait to participate in the “Nile Corniche Development” project, aiming to add about 8,000 new hotel rooms to absorb an expected increase in tourist numbers, especially after the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, according to a source familiar with the Cabinet’s offerings program in previous statements to Al Manassa.
