the impact of global change on the urban growth in cairo ... soliman/english/01...(27 june – 2...

(27 June – 2 July 2010). 21st. IAPS - Conference “Vulnerability, Risk and Complexity: Impacts

of Global Change on Human Habitats", Leipzig – Germany.

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The Impact of Global Change on the Urban Growth in Cairo city

and its Suburbs

Sahar Soliman Abd-Alla,

Associate Professor, Department of Housing & Architecture,

HBRC, Cairo, Egypt

Cell: 02-0101699580, Fax: 02 333 57 045, E-mail: [email protected]

Maha Samy Kamel

Associate Professor, Department of Housing & Architecture,

HBRC, Cairo, Egypt

Cell: 02-0122104712, Fax: 02 292 98 417, E-mail: ُ [email protected]

Abstract

According to the 2006 census, Egypt’s population is estimated at 73 million living on

5.5% of the total area of the country. Cairo, the capital of Egypt, has a total population of

about 14 million in 2006. Within the last three decades, its total built-up area increased more

than 270%. In the late seventies, the government started establishing new cities and

communities, to redistribute population, upgrade the quality of the living environment, and to

protect agricultural land. Now new urban settlements are bounded Cairo on its outer ring

road.

The paper presents the demographic growth of Cairo city and its urban problems

related to. It focuses on the new urban settlements around Cairo, and evaluates the socio-

economic concept of gated communities in the suburbs, as an impact of the global change. It

exposes to the identity of gated communities as a global culture, as segregation or integration

patterns in the Egyptian context.

Key words: urban growth, new settlements, gated communities.

Introduction

Egypt's rapid population growth is placing severe pressures on the country's

resources. According to the population censuses, Egypt's population has doubled from 9.7

million to more than 18 million in fifty years since 1897 to 1947 (Serag el Dean, M. &

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]



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Others, 2000). The second doubling took almost thirty years from 1947 to 1976 reaching

around 36 million according to 1976 census. In 1986, population reached 48.3 million, and by

1996 it was 59.3 million. During the twentieth century the population of Egypt has increased

by more than 5 times. Population is projected to reach 94 million by 2020 and 101 million by

2025, an addition of almost 1.35 million annually. Population growth can also contribute to

urban environmental problems.

Figure 1. Population growth in Egypt from1960 to2009

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

20092006199619861960

Rural

Urban

Paper objectives

- Analysis the urban transformation of Cairo and the policies to control its physical problems.

- Contributing in understanding the global change and its effect on the urban context.

- Suggest recommendation.

Methodology

An in-depth qualitative study based on theoretical analytical approach through the following:

- Analyze the demographic growth of Cairo and its physical problems.

- Explain the policies, master plans and the existing situation of the GCR.

- Focus on the new urban settlements, and evaluate the socio-economic concept of gated

communities as an impact of privatization and global change.



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The Capital City- the Demographic factors

The Greater Cairo Region, [GCR], occupies an area of about 928 km2 distributed over

three governorates [Cairo, Giza & Qaliubiah] (El Araby, M., 2002), with population about 16

million. It is one of the most densely populated cities in the world [385 inhabitants/ km2]

(USAID, 2006). Its population has increased by nearly 16 times during the period from 1800

to 1986. Between 1986 and 2006, the city's population grew from 9.5 million to more than 14

million (CAPMAS, 2006). The table below presents the population and growth rate in Egypt

and the capital city during the twentieth century till now.

Table – 1. The population in Cairo, Egypt from 1900 to 2009 (CAPMAS 2009, 2006, 1996, 1986)

year Cairo Egypt

Population (millions) Growth rate Population (millions) Growth rate

1900 600 2.3 10,000 1.2

1920 875 3.1 13,000 1.3

1930 1,150 2.2 15,000 1.4

1940 1,525 4.1 19,000 2.3

1950 2,350 4.1 21,000 1.0

1960 4,784 2.2 26,000 2.2

1976 6,776 3.5 36.6 00 2.4

1986 9,514 3.45 50.500 2.8

1996 12,000 2.35 60,000 2.1

2006 14,000 1.55 73,000 2.0

2009 16.000 83,083

Cairo & Its Rapid Urban Growth

After the 1973 war, the policy of the government moved from a socialist and public-

sector-dominated economy to the "open-door" policy. The latter aimed at encouraging the

private sector and attracting international and Arab investment. A large part of such

investment was directed to GCR, fostering further rapid urban development. The urbanized

area doubled between 1968 and 1982 increasing from 16000 to 32000 hectares, which

influenced the urban real estate and led to the inflation of land values and construction costs

(Serag el Dean, M. & Others, 2000). During the 1980s and 1990s, informal and illegal



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housing appeared in many areas on the outskirts of the city. In 1994, the population was

representing more than 20% of Egypt's total population and about 40% of its urban

population. At the same period it was estimated that more than 4 million people were living

in illegal settlements in the GCR.

The efforts of the government to control the growth of the city have not been

sufficient as it kept growing in most directions. The physical expansion of the city did not

match the rapid population growth, as a result the population densities rose to surprising

levels. In 2000, the total built up area of GCR was about 524, 4 km2.

Policies and Master Plans for the GCR

Due to the urban problems and population growth, a master plan was formulated in

1973, suggested to construct a ring road surrounding the existing built-up area of the city to

control its growth. Secondly, it was recommended that self-sufficient new communities be

established at suitable distances from the city to attract additional expected growth.

In 1983, the 1973 plan has been updated taking in account the importance of socio-

economic changes that occurred after 1974 as a result of the open door policy. The master

plan aimed to improving the living environment in GCR by directing the growth to the new

settlements, providing alternative to informal areas (Lo, F.-C., Yeung Y. M., Yousry M.,

Abu-Zekry, T. & Yousry A., 1998). It was considered that population could be

accommodated by incremental development, in proposed major housing projects, within the

existing area and the rest will be accommodated outside the built-up area through the

establishment of new communities with a target of 250,000 each. It was estimated that

4,745,000 inhabitants would be absorbed in these communities by the year 2000.

The master plan was updated in 1991, and then in 1997. It expected that the region

population will reach 24 million by the year 2020 which means 8 million more than the



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current population, considering that capacity of the new cities can absorb about 5.6 million of

this increase and the rest will be in the existing urban built-up areas.

The Existing Situation of the GCR

In 2006, the total population of GCR was 14 million in addition to 1.5 million in new

cities, which presented about 22% of the total population of the country, and about 43% of

the total urban population. The increase in population as well as their high density, and the

rapid urban growth led to the emergence of many problems, such as over crowdedness, lake

of services, deterioration of the built environment, and the increase in pressures on utilities

and infrastructure. The Capital city suffers from environmental degradation and major

transportation problems with severe traffic congestion. All this lead to the deterioration of

existing residential areas.

Another problem is the spread of squatters and informal settlements with all its

negative impacts on the environment, beside the destruction of arable land. Recent

comparisons of satellite pictures indicate that informal encroachment on agricultural lands

continues at a rate triple that of ‘formal’ expansion. Nearly 3.5 million live in squatter areas

in GCR, about 184 settlements (UNDP, 2003). These include chronically inadequate

infrastructure and growing social inequities. Such informal settlements met the housing needs

of middle and low- income groups in Cairo city. A number of actions have been taken by the

government to solve the problems caused by the population growth and the uncontrolled

urban sprawl. They tried to stop this development by building low cost housing, however, the

demand for this housing is much higher than the provided stock (Friederike Z., 2007).

Figure 2. Extent of Informal Settlements in GCR



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New Cities and Communities

The government established new communities to absorb the increase in population and to

decentralize the population of Cairo. Now new urban settlements are bounding Cairo on its

outer ring road, which varied from small new communities within existing cities to large

independent communities that have their own economic base. We can classify the new towns

and satellites surrounding Cairo city as shown below (Serag el Dean, M. & others, 2000):

New towns, which are independent cities at a sufficient distance from the center city that

their resident will not commute in to work. It required strong employment base,

residential areas and services.[10Th. of Ramadan, Badr, El-Amal, Sadat City]

Satellite city are similar to new towns, but are situated closer to the city center, adjacent

to the boundary of the region but not included in it. [ 6 October , Al-Obour, 15 of May ]

New settlements are areas of mostly residential development which take advantage of

existing employment bases and offer an alternative to living in the informal settlements.

New Settlements and Satellite city around GCR

Cairo surrounded now by eight new satellite and settlements. The new settlements are

smaller and are physically and functionally tied to the urban agglomeration conceived as

partially self-sufficient communities for a target population of 250,000 each. The Population

of the agglomeration in 2000 was about 165000 inhabitants.



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Figure 3. New Settlements and Satellite Cities around Cairo

New communities have suffered from a lot of resettlement problems, while their

current population sizes is far behind their projected targets, representing 15% less than their

anticipated at 2006, this is beside the very low occupancy rate representing 40% of their

established housing units (CAMPAS, 2006). The responsible planning ministry GOPP

expected that 1.9 million people from mainly the lower and middle classes find

accommodation there, besides providing 80% of its population with job opportunities.

The new communities program intended to direct the population out of crowded GCR

while offering housing and accessible employment and services. The intentions of these new

cities were to provide better alternative to the middle and low income classes rather than

informal settlements. Government offer of public housing was not embraced by the

population; many of the units built between 1982 and 2000 are still empty or already

deteriorated (Abdelhalim, H. T., 2006). Evidently, these towns are no alternative for the

lower class, which resemble a large number of the residents in the informal settlements.

Consequently a lot of the employees reside in their quarters and commute to work every day.

They prefer to be shuttled everyday from distant informal settlements rather than move near

their jobs (due to economic and social aspects).



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On the other hand, the upper and the high middle classes are switching from the

capital city to private estates at the suburb; so called “gated communities.” This results in an

intensified segregation between different social classes, which could also lead to the

development of social hot spots and riots. The new cities fit the high middle and upper-

classes rather than lower income families. It didn't meet housing needs of the low-income

people.

Global change and the privatization concept

Privatization is the process of transferring ownership of a business, enterprise, agency

or public service from the public sector {government} to the private sector {business}. It has

become with many meanings from restructuring basic economic institutions to foster a

competitive free enterprise system, to various methodologies for encouraging the private

sector to perform services now being provided within the public sector (Bayoumi,. A., 2009).

Since the late 1970's the Egyptian government adopted an economic reform strategy

changes from socio-political regime (socialism system) towards the free-market enterprise

(open door economy) at 1975 till 1987 , followed by adaptation of the privatization scheme,

then the laissez-faire ideology through 1992 to 2001, and then the privatization and

globalization era (from 2001 and onwards). The Egyptian economy changed from a planned

economy to a private sector led one. The interaction of these economic and political factors

created a new social and culture environment in Egypt. These changes have worked for the

benefits of the rich and excluded the poor from the housing market in GCR and from the new

communities.

Due to globalization most economic activities has been internationalized. The

international system becomes autonomized, as markets and production become truly global



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(Rogers, J., Worty, H. & Boyer, R., 1997). The government integrated into the global

economy by singing many agreements with the overseas and trans-national companies which

have asked to be allocated further land parcels in the notable focal points, particularly those

located in newly development areas within the GCR new towns.

Socio-culture Polarization

The implementation of the open door policy has led to large inequalities in the socio-

economic structure of the Egyptian society. With the implementation of the privatization

policies, influential upper level groups exerted pressure to accelerate the public-private

transformation process. An acute socio-cultural class polarization has occurred as a result of

the structural changes in the Egyptian economy.

During the last two decades the privet sector in Egypt had engaged with large scale

urban development projects in the GCR new towns, seeking for the huge speculative

revenues. According to estimates by the Ministry of Housing and Reconstruction in 1992, the

private sector contributed 97% of the total investment in housing. Since low and middle cost

housing is not very profitable, investors started to build exclusive residential estates.

Therefore they either concentrate on establishing the exclusive gated communities for the

most profit luxury housing market ignoring the needs of the vast majority from the poor and

low income. Unfortunately, these residential projects are responding to the global change and

the privatization concept. Since the privatization of space has led to new processes and new

forms of urban space arrangement.

Gated Communities and the Privatization of Urban Space

GCs are enclosed residential communities with private urban spaces including various

amenities. These communities are characterized by a closed perimeter of fences, walls, or

landscaping that provides a physical barrier to entry, it also have strictly controlled entrances



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providing security. The existence of security features distinguish GCs as a residential setting

which is significantly different from non-gated enclaves (Blakely E., & Snyder, M., 1997).

GCs represent a form of urbanism where public space is privatized. The privatization of

space occurs when a planned community implements policies which allow only the members

of that community exclusive rights to what was previously “public goods.” Public goods are

amenities and/or services that are available to all members of a society equally and do not

require any significant additional fee to use. Examples of public goods include physical

locations such as sidewalks, streets or community resources, such as parks or recreation

areas. Other examples of public goods include services provided by local government to all

citizens, such as police protection and road maintenance (Elena, V. & Matthew C., 2002).

Gated communities are a result of the socio-economic and the socio-political changes.

These gated communities create exclusive zones for the wealthy to satisfy their desire of

enjoying a better quality of life than provided by governments (Glasze, G., Webster, C. &

Frantz, K., 2006). The concept of gated communities led to fragmentation of the urban

community. These private residential communities exist in a setting of governmental

regulation and taxation.

The Background of Gated Communities

The concept of gated communities is not new. While historically we knew the cities

surrounded by walls to stop the enemy’s armies and to prevent them from entering easily into

the city. There was an enormous gate to go through, this was the main entrance guarded by

soldiers. Smaller gates were the secondary entrances to the city. These cities were named

Walled Cities. In more recent times, a much larger number of gated communities has rapidly

developed and spread all over the world.



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Gated Communities in Egypt

The expansion of gated communities in Egypt began in the early 1980s when the

government started to sell land for the construction of villages along the beaches of the

northwest coast. Then, GCs have been established or are under construction in this area. This

kind of GCs has also started to spread along the coast of the Red Sea and along the beaches

of Sinai. . In the1990s, the Egyptian government sold large portions of public land in the new

communities around Cairo (about 100 km2) to real estate developers (USAID, 2006). Since

the mid-1990s a similar development has been observed around Cairo, where luxurious

settlements surrounded by high walls are under construction or already inhabited by the elite.

These GCs are developing very fast and have become an important trend for both the real-

estate industry and the prospective homebuyer. Since these new form of housing fits perfectly

with the model of global consumption. The massive growth of GCs developments has been

one of the major urban changes in the suburbs around Cairo. The real estate product has also

been successful in adapting to change with great efficiency. It has been able to meet the needs

of very different markets by imposing a new form of housing that fits in perfectly with the

model of global consumption.

Gated Communities in the new communities around Cairo

GCs are a new urban trend that grow fast in the new towns. Since living in private

enclosed compounds has recently been associated with a distinctive and elite lifestyle. In the

early 2000s, more than 320 real estate companies planned the construction of many GCs

bearing names such as Dream Land, Utopia, and Beverly Hills. Private investors initiated

housing projects that were in their conceptual design very similar to gated communities all

over the world.



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The Egyptian GCs offer social prestige since the social segregation promoted by the

limits of the enclaves isolated the wealthy classes from the problems of the public sphere.

Due to the high cost of living, the lower classes are excluded from these areas. The quest for

security, social prestige, property value, an escape from the city and protection from what lies

outside, are the main reasons for the success of these developments.

Figure 4. Architecture Form & Features in GCs

Gated Communities, segregation or integration patterns

The new communities have become divided into an area where the affluent have

walled themselves off and an area where the social, and middle classes remain, almost

creating two separate cities. Furthermore, as gated communities continue to evolve and their

means of security become more developed, this “security by design” concept maintains the

separation between the different classes within these new communities. GCs have often been

diagnosed as a form of “urban pathology” (Davis, 1990) that is associated with destructive

forms of “splintering urbanism” (Graham and Marvin, 2001).

The privatization of space has led to new processes and new forms of urban space

arrangement. Scholars and observers have discussed the link between gating and segregation.

There is a wide range of academic arguments from scholars supporting the idea that gating is

in fact a process which contributes to residential integration, while others believe that it is a

form of exclusion and segregation. In 1997, Blakely and Snyder argued that gated



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communities were creating new forms of exclusion and residential segregation, aggravating

social division which already exists. In 2001, Webster argued that they are characterized by

the presence of striking social injustice and housing inequalities.

In many communities, the wall or fence does not so much serve for protection and

security but rather as a way of reinforcing prestige; it becomes an element that symbolizes the

power of the development and of its inhabitants (Bellet, C.,2007).

Gated Communities, pros and cons

Gated Communities have become attractive to a wide spectrum of people: high-

middle and upper classes. It offer luxury housing, clean environment, and good infrastructure

for those eager to escape the polluted, crowded, and noisy Capital city. GCs allow residents

to enjoy all the benefits of suburbia but within the city, a quiet life, extended open spaces

with green areas, more privacy, and safer environment for children. The physical barriers

surrounding the GCs create an extra layer of enclosure, which ensures the privatization of

space. The word 'gated' means different things to different people, some people think of gated

as "exclusive". Some think of it as "security", others think of it as lifestyle and prestige, but

most think of ' privacy".

Scholars point to GCs that it ensure the appreciation of the property values, offer

better protection from crime and more of a sense of community (Blakey & Snider, 1997). On

the economic level, property values in large gated communities show a better resistance to

market fluctuations. Furthermore, GCs were successful in providing employment

opportunities, due to reviving crafts related to building activity, but on the other hand, a vast

capital was invested to serve 3.5% of the Egyptian population.

The architecture in the GCs did not reflect local heritage or appropriateness to a desert



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environment. Architectural features were imported from western forms in an eclectic way,

not following any pure style or movement. It represent new urban form affected by the

western pattern, which appears in the architecture vocabulary, details and in the urban forms.

The gating acts as a border between the public and private systems which encourage

social segregation and increase social exclusion. GCs can create social paranoia due to the

security-oriented life-style. Gating can lead to a relocation of crime outside the gates and

within adjacent non-gated communities. It can have a negative impact on property values in

non-gated adjacent neighborhoods. Access control and security features represent a

substantial cost for the homeowner. These communities contribute to the increase of urban

inequality.

Conclusion

Global Transformation has been aggravated in Cairo by its orientation towards

globalization. The paper deals with the rapid urban growth of Cairo City and the urban

problems related to it, since the urban development policies for the GCR have not yet

achieved their major goals. New cities were one of the solutions in which the government

suggested to control the urban growth, and to absorb the extended population. As a response

to the strategic move towards the market economy, new settlements around the GCR offered

advantages for private sector investment since they were provided with basic infrastructure.

Gated communities are a form of residential areas which spread in the new

communities around Cairo. These GCs represent a form of urbanism with high urban quality,

it is by no means a universal urban phenomenon representing the fragmentation of urban

patterns within the city. GCs are a reflect of the global change and the concept of

privatization, since the Egyptian society has manifested a rapid socio-economic



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transformation. The physical features of GCs are distinguished from other residential areas

that are not gated. The existence of fences, walls and security created a type of segregation

between the in and out of the gates, strengthening social differences and therefore

endangering social cohesion.

Gated Communities participate in the urbane development of the new cities, just for

the high middle and upper classes. This urban development didn't help in solving the housing

problem of the majority, since the developers ignored the objective behind the new towns,

and changing the demographic mix by replacing low income housing by middle, upper

middle and luxury dwelling.

On the other hand, the shortage of housing units for low income groups led to the

extension of informal settlements which represent the major means for low-income families to

access shelter. Scholars expect more expansion of informal and illegal pattern of growth in the

future. It is expected that if the current pattern of growth continues in the future, the GCR

will continue to expand rapidly along its major regional axes, particularly the Cairo-

Alexandria axis. Moreover, the new towns will extend on the desert land which is

surrounding the GCR and eventually both will be connected to each other. The gap between

the pattern of housing growth for the different social classes of the society is continuously

expanding. We can see the contrast between gated communities in new cities and the

informal settlements in the GCR.

Recommendations

- Establishing long term policies for the future of urban planning in the GCR and its

surrounding cities.

- Restudy the land use in the new communities and their influence on the GCR.



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- Integrate and coordinate between the policy and the implementation of our urban and master

plans.

- Adopting a strategy of sustainability should be our goal, sustain private investment in the

low and middle income housing in the new settlements.

- We can learn from our successful gated communities to improve our urban planning and to

maintain the urban environmental quality.

- New communities represent an invaluable asset and promising potential, so they deserve

more attention from the specialists.

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