Sixth of October Development & Investment Company (Sodic) has been awarded about 125,500 square metres of land in the Sixth of October City west of Cairo, according to a company statement.

The land was tendered and awarded by the Egyptian housing ministry’s New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA).

It is unclear how Sodic will develop the land, although the local Daily News Egypt reported a company spokesperson as saying the site will be developed as a residential scheme due to rising demand for property in the area.

Egypt currently needs up to 500,000 residential units to enter the market every year in order to deal with a housing shortage.

It is unclear whether Sodic will opt for another high-end development, such as its $2.2bn Westown scheme in Cairo, or look to develop affordable housing in line with its current slum redevelopment initiatives across the country.  

In July, Sodic and local authorities in Cairo signed an agreement with the local Holding Company for Water and Wastewater as well as the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) for the rehabilitation of 1,000 homes within inner city slums.

The project involves connecting homes to the fresh water and wastewater networks in Ezbet Khairallah, as well as installing a firefighting network for surrounding areas.