Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly directed officials on Monday, 7 September, to begin the “Greening Cairo” initiative, ordering immediate tree planting along the capital’s Ring Road and other major thoroughfares, alongside a citywide inventory of vacant government land to be converted into parks and green space.
According to Madbouly, agencies currently controlling undeveloped land in Cairo will be offered plots in new cities as compensation, clearing the way for a sweeping initiative to convert unused urban land into parks and green corridors, refreshing public spaces.
The announcement came during a meeting to review progress on President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi’s directive to launch a “Greening Cairo” campaign, aimed at transforming vacant areas throughout the capital into vegetated public space. The session included Minal Awad, minister of local development and environment, Randa El-Menshawy, minister of housing, utilities and urban communities, and Cairo Governor Ibrahim Saber, according to a cabinet statement.
Madbouly called for a task force drawing on relevant ministries, the governorate and outside consultants to guide the project’s rollout, and asked for a standardized approach to tree planting along the city’s major roads, to be shaped by expert recommendations on suitable species and layouts. He also instructed that recycled wastewater be used to irrigate the new greenery.
El-Menshawy said parallel efforts were already underway with consultants to expand green space in Egypt’s new cities using similar wastewater-irrigation methods. Saber noted that a pilot tree-planting model has already been rolled out on a street in Nasr City, with plans to extend it to other major roads, and said officials are compiling an inventory of vacant lots across Cairo for conversion into parks.
Consultants briefing the meeting outlined a broader strategy that includes landscaping unused parcels, upgrading public squares, greening bridges, and lining major roads and corridors with trees selected for shade, hardiness, and efficient water use. Officials also presented examples of ongoing greening work across Greater Cairo and design proposals for future parks.
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