Hala El-Said, Egypt’s Minister of Planning and Economic Development has announced that she has approved a funding of $3.12 mn for the construction of a pedestrian bridge and a corniche-side river marina, at Muhammad Ali Palace in Cairo, according to Daily News Egypt.
The daily has reported that the funding comes as part of the fiscal year 2020/21 plan, and will be given to the Supreme Council of Antiquities, which runs under the umbrella of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. The funding was approved in light of the development work that is currently ongoing at the Muhammad Ali Palace.
El-Said stated that the ministry is keen to provide the necessary support required for national and historic projects, and that the funding for the Muhammad Ali Palace comes in implementation of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s directives during a conference on the Grand Egyptian Museum, reported the Daily News Egypt.
The Minister further noted that one of the conference’s decisions was the establishment of a river marina on the corniche opposite the Muhammad Ali Palace in Cairo, to help transport visitors and avoid traffic congestion. She said that the marina construction project falls under the main project entitled “Restoration of Islamic and Coptic Antiquities”, and pointed to the state’s interest in restoring historic monuments.
According to the Egyptian daily, the Muhammad Ali Palace restoration project was allocated $6.36 mn, and then strengthened with an amount of $440,000. This means that the total amount approved for the project stands at $760,000 in the FY 2021/2020 plan.