The 1995/1996 Household Income, Expenditure - (PDF, 101 mb ...

VI.?
notoriously difficult to regulate. Moreover, tenants evade the laws by
subletting to friends. It has been estimated that there are some 12 million
landlord/tenant lawsuits pending in the courts, and that by the year 2000
there might be 19 million. J The number of judges trying these cases has 6
remained stagnant, and rental cases take up to 8 years to come to a decision.
One of the results of Sadat's Open Door (infitah) economic policy ­
beginning roughly in 1974 - was a large increase in private sector investment
in housing. The 1970p were boom years as the private sector took command of
housing construction. Land, building materials and construction labor prices
rose rapidly. However, housing investment was not intended for easing
population pressures on inhabitable space during the decade after 1973. As
the population of Cairo nearly doubled, from 6 million to 10 million, Waterbury
(1983) estimates that three-quarters of all dwellings constructed during the
period were intended for luxury use.
By 1992 housing investment had recovered to 10.9% of total investment
in the economy, and 95% of this came from the private sector. For the
government's Third 5-Year Plan (1992-1997), the private sector was expected
J Statement of former World Bank resident advisor in Egypt Marcelo
Cuigale.
6 Serageldin (1993).
7 Between 1960 and 1976 the public sector provided around one-third (UN
(Habitat), p. 15) of housing construction, mainly substandard (or "popular")
housing to be provided at greatly subsidized rates. Legislation for informal
communities emphasized the government's commitment to equity and
participation. Law 135 of 1981 officially recognized slum areas as legitimate
and permanent settlements to be incorporated into the formal planning
process, with associated infrastructure enhancements. Law 31 of 1984
established procedures for legalizing land tenure in slum areas (Cooperative
Housing Foundation, 1988). The state had, by that time, established its
opinion that private, individual ownership of land - especially for the poorer
segments - was the most secure and respectable tenure form, and therefore
the most likely form for encouraging households to invest. It also provided a
mechanism for cost recovery from slum upgrading. However, the state would
eventually reverse its support for tenure legalization as obligations to provide
infrastructure became overwhelming. A very detailed study of informal
communities in Cairo and Beni Suef is found in Abt Associates, (1982).
B Districts around Cairo have seen the largest land value increases.
Unimproved land in Nasser City today costs approximately 7,000 £E per square
meter, and upwards of 10,000 £E per square meter in Zamalek. Land in
Heliopolis and Ma'adi is only marginally cheaper. Overall building costs per
square meter have risen accordingly. As quoted by Dr. Milad Hanna,
professor emeritus of construction engineering at Ain Shams University, Cairo,
in Essam el Din (1994), pp. 15-16, the cost of constructing new popular
housing is about 160 £E per square meter, 200-400 £E for "above average"
housing, and 1,000-2,000 £E for luxury housing.