For decades, Egyptians have been complaining about a chronic housing crisis: there never seem to be enough homes to keep up with the rapid growth of the Arab world’s most populous country. Yet, surprisingly, Egypt is one of largest producers of housing in the world… in fact there are millions of empty homes in Egypt… defying the simple logic of supply and demand.
In his book, “Egypt’s Housing Crisis”, Yahia Shawkat, housing and urban policy researcher, attempts to explain this paradox. His account offers a rare documentation of the attempts and mostly failures of successive Egyptian regimes to resolve the housing dilemma. He discusses his book with Khaled Ezzelarab in this episode of Middle East Talks.
Guest: Yahia Shawkat is a housing and urban policy researcher who specializes in legislative analysis, data visualization, and historical mapping. He is research coordinator for 10 Tooba, a research studio he co-founded in 2014 that focuses on spatial justice and fair housing.
Interviewer: Khaled Ezzelarab, Associate Professor of Practice, Journalism and Mass Communication Department, and Director of the Middle East Studies Program, American University in Cairo
Book: Shawkat, Yahia, and David Sims. Egypt's Housing Crisis: The Shaping of Urban Space. 1st ed. La Vergne: The American University in Cairo Press, 2020. doi:10.2307/j.ctv2ks6zb8.
Intro Music: Festival of Eid Joy by Adiiswanto, licensed via Pixabay Music
This podcast was produced with the help of Nourhan Amer, Nouran Elian, and Judi Yassin
Get in touch via email mesc@aucegypt.edu
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this podcast series are those of participants and do not reflect the opinions of The American University in Cairo. Copyright is held by the appropriate AUC school, office or department unless otherwise stated. Requests for permission to quote or use any content should be addressed to the appropriate AUC school, office or department directly.