Egypt’s National Authority for Civil Coordination has begun plans to renovate Cairo’s Opera Square, Azbakeya Park and the statue of former Ottoman sultan Ibrahim Pasha, and will complete the project by the end of June, according to a statement made on Monday by the authority’s head, Mohammed Abu Saada.
Abu Saada noted that this project follows on the successful renovation of Cairo’s Tahrir Square, which has been transformed into an artistic piece of homogeneous heritage depicting the image of Egypt throughout history, including the modern era.
Abu Saada also said that Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has asked the authority to develop other parts of downtown, including several buildings on Qasr al-Nil street, as well as the Bahler, al Shawarby and al-Alfy passages, and to undertake the renovation in keeping with Tahrir square’s new look.
Twenty-five buildings overlook Tahrir Square, including the bureaucratic center Mogamma al-Tahrir, the American University in Cairo, and the Egyptian Museum, which dates back to the end of the 19th century. All of these buildings are registered as heritage buildings to be preserved.
The authority has drawn up a plan to renovate the buildings, in cooperation with the Cairo Governorate, the Ministry of Housing, the Ministry of Antiquities and the business sector, Abu Saada noted.
He said that the authority has renovated architectural motifs, inscriptions, symbols and lost decorations, and has added lighting elements provided by the Sound and Light Company to the renovated buildings to make them match the lighting of the Egyptian Museum and Mogamma al-Tahrir.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
