A Framework for Housing Policy Reform in Urban Areas in Egypt : Developing a Well Functioning Housing System and Strengthening the National Housing Program

This document builds upon several recent
studies and reports carried out in the 2006-2007 period. The
first note, entitled analysis of housing supply mechanisms
(World Bank), analyzes the situation of housing supply in
urban areas in Egypt, including the study of existing formal
and informal mechanisms for the delivery of urban housing,
the institutions responsible for supply and regulation, the
characteristics of the formal and informal stock, and the
institutional and regulatory framework governing land use
planning and development. The second is a housing demand
study in Greater Cairo (USAID TAPRII), which uses household
data surveyed in December 2006 and yields results on the
housing demand and household characteristics in the Greater
Cairo Region. The third is an analysis of subsidized
housing programs (USAID TAPRII), which assesses past,
existing and pipeline subsidy programs in Egypt.
International Best Practices were presented at a high-level
workshop held in April 2007 with the intent of assessing
different schemes of housing subsidies and reforms used in
other emerging markets, in order draw lessons pertinent for
Egypt. Finally, a note (World Bank) summarized the framework
for moving from a program-based to a policy-based approach
to housing sector reform, which was jointly developed by the
World Bank and USAID TAPRII teams and discussed with
Government of Egypt (GOE) policymakers in the high-level
workshops of April and May 2007, and endorsed in September
2007. These studies and reports are briefly summarized in
the annex (section seven) to this report.