On the sidelines of the Egypt Economic Development Conference on 14 March, Housing Minister Mostafa Madbouli tells MEED “local developers will have to get involved after the first phase” of UAE-based Arabtec Holding’s one million-home project.

In March, MEED reported that Arabtec Holding was told by Egyptian officials the conditions of the scheme may be breached if funds were raised through Egyptian banks.

In a press conference earlier on 14 March, Madbouli confirmed that the dispute between Arabtec and the Egyptian authorities surrounding the funding of the project had been resolved and that construction will start “within two months”.

Although reports earlier this month suggested Cairo wanted the scheme to be strictly funded through foreign direct investment, Mabdouli explained to MEED that the latter stages will be made up of foreign and domestic capital, with local banks and developers getting involved.

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