Farouk El-Baz

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1979

Abstract

In January 201 1, the youth of Egypt revolted against a corrupt government, which lacked vision and imagination. They had lost hope in a bright future for Egypt - a vast country whose population remained confined along the Nile River and Delta, Its cities and villages are severely overcrowded, and its education and health systems cannot cope with the dense population, In addition, over the past 20 years, fertile land has been lost to urban growth at the ratc of 30,000 feddars per year. At that rate all of Egypt's fertile land of 5.5 million feddans would disappear in 183 years. Thus, there is a dire need for major changes, including the opening of new land for living, not only for the present 80 million pcople, but also for the expected addition of 60 million by the vear 2050. This proposal of a Development Corridor is designed to solve the looming crises. It includes a north-south axis starting at a new port near El-Alemein along the Mediterranean coastline, This axis would run parallcl to the Nile Delta until the latitude of Cairo then southward parallel to the Nile Valley to the border of Sudan, a total of 12.000 kilometcrs. Tt would include an cight-lane highway, a railroad track, a water pipeline (about onc meler in diamcter) from Lake Nasser for human consumption and services, and an clectricity line to be connected 10 the main grid for future production of solar energy. The living area east of the north-south axis would be served by at Ileast 12 east-west branches to connect the main axis to densely populated cities along its path. The new strip of land that would be open for development O the plain between the north-south axis and the inhabited land is 10.5 million acres, This is nearly double the presently used land arca. This expanse of land would be utilized ın new urban communities, education cities, hospitals, agriculture, agro-industries, factories, sports arenas, tourist sites, clc. Such a major project would requirc a decade to complete; perhaps the first five years would be devoted to the cast-west branches to immediately ease population pressures. Another five would be devoted to establishing the main north-south transportation and cnergy axis. However, form the start, young people would either secure jobs in the building phase, or plan for economic development activities along the casl-west branches, with hope for a better future.

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