Egypt military opens 'New Cairo' luxury hotel, as old Cairo sinks in poverty
A swanky new hotel built by Egypt’s Armed Forces Engineering Authority was unveiled on Friday, coinciding with the 44th anniversary of the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, sparking criticism on social media.
The al-Massa Capital Hotel is the first to be built in Egypt’s new administrative capital.
Egypt's plan to construct a new metropolis 45km east of Cairo was announced in March 2015 at a Sharm al-Sheikh summit held to lure back foreign investors who fled after the 2011 revolution.
The new capital aims to ease congestion and overpopulation in Cairo.
Whilst the hotel includes a resort, an elaborate conference hall and lake, many Egyptians are still struggling to afford food and basic necessities.
Social media users were quick to point out the discrepancies.
Egypt's inflation rose to a three-decade high in April, with food prices rising by 43.6 percent year on year.
"Everything is so expensive. We can't afford to eat. I don't know what to buy," Baheega Mostafa, a housewife shopping for food, told Reuters in May.
"I voted for Sisi. Unfortunately. I regret it very much."
The new "capital" will cost $45bn, Housing Minister Mostafa Madbouly told the BBC. "We are talking about a world capital," he added.
Built to help alleviate Cairo's overcrowding and pollution, the new administrative capital was initially expected to cost $300bn and feature an airport larger than London's Heathrow and a building taller than Paris's Eiffel Tower.
This article is available in French on Middle East Eye French edition.
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