The real reason Egypt is moving its capital
Cairo isn’t the problem.
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In 2017, Egypt’s government announced it would build a new capital city 45 kilometers outside of Cairo, the current capital. It was a shocking announcement since Cairo, a city of more than 10,000,000 people, has been the capital of Egypt for decades.
The government claims that Cairo has become too overcrowded and that moving the capital will give both Cairo’s residents and government workers more space. But this excuse is not new. For decades, Egypt’s rulers have been building brand new cities in the desert. None of them have solved Cairo’s density issue. And based on how construction is going, this new capital won’t be a solution either.
So why does Egypt want a new capital? Well, it has a lot to do with the political revolution in 2011.
Watch this episode of Vox Atlas to understand the real reason behind Egypt’s giant new capital city.
Sources:
Mohamed Elshahed’s extensive expertise on architectural history and urbanism helped us understand why creating new cities and communities doesn’t actually improve livelihoods in Cairo:
Nasr City was once Egypt’s new capital, but things went wrong:
cairobserver.com/post/1143911...
Revolutionary Modernism? Architecture and the Politics of Transition in Egypt 1936-1967:
www.proquest.com/openview/e19...
For historical maps of Cairo, we mainly relied on these three books:
Understanding Cairo: The Logic of a City Out of Control by David Sims
books.google.com/books/about/...
Egypt’s Desert Dreams: Development or Disaster by David Sims
books.google.com/books/about/...
Cairo by André Raymond
www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.p...
We used this report by LSE cities to compare densities between major cities at 1:52:
lsecities.net/wp-content/uplo...
For the map at 5:05, we used an updated informal cities map created by Ahmed Zaazaa, a researcher and urban designer. For the demolitions and displacement locations, we used press clippings from Egypt Today and maps from the Cairo 2050 plan. Not all locations are shown.
www.egypttoday.com/Article/Se...
cairofrombelow.files.wordpres...
These three links helped us create the diagram at 6:42 that shows the population target gaps in Greater Cairo’s new cities:
The Built Environment Observatory: marsadomran.info/en/facts_budg...
City Population: www.citypopulation.de/en/egyp...
Egypt census data: egypt.opendataforafrica.org/t...
These two pieces helped guide the direction of our video:
The Sinister Side of Sisi’s Urban Development by Maged Mandour
carnegieendowment.org/sada/84504
Why is Egypt building a new capital by Mustafa Menshaway
www.aljazeera.com/opinions/20...
And a special thanks to the many others based in Cairo who helped us research for this video. Unfortunately, their names could not be listed due to safety concerns.
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This is an episode of Vox Atlas, where we demonstrate where conflicts occurs on a map and the ways in which foreign policy shapes a region. Watch more episodes of Atlas here: kzhead.info/channel/PLJ8cMiYb3G5e4MOmzf-piIWQb4INRW18g.html
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Why nobody talking about Indonesia new capital city called "Nusantara"? Is that not fit on your "agenda"?
BRILLIANT. Seeing this is another of the thousands of reasons to confirm my TROTSKYISM.
@@FitraRahim THIS IS A NEW SERIES SO MAYBE IT IS COMING UP ON THE AGENDA!!!
So basically, Egypt's new capital is the new Versailles, which was more than just the palace, it was the administrative capital of the Kingdom of France. The king was then followed by other aristocrats, who built their mansions away from Paris, some around Versailles, while others were in more remote locations, effectively abandoning the poor to squalour and neglect in Paris. Although the nobility could forget the poor, the poor never forgot the nobility, so when the revolution occurred, they marched all the way to Versailles, and laid siege to the estate, forcing the royals to surrender. If history is a guild, Egypt's new capital will not make long outstanding problems go away, there is no distance far enough for the oligarchy to escape revolutionaries, justice is patient.
Excellent lesson, thanks. -from an ignorant American🙃
French aristocrats would rent rooms in the Versaille Palace and essentially be absentee landlords. They'd leave bailiffs back in their lands to collect rent from peasants in villages.
Here's a little twist, how about you look at this without the lens of rich and poor. What then the observation would be? 🤔
@@KeshArt ask any egyptian, they will tell you that the president is a dictator, everybody knows why he’s building this capital
Will a revolution solve all these problems?
How considerate of them to include a new revolution square.
🙂🙂
Even with the generosity of a new revolution square more then 50km away the attendance is rather low! The people must looooooooove their goverment!
I know it's sarcasm but it actually serves a purpose it's a square to parade the military to quil any thoughts of an uprise
Top comment
This is a new city with gates. Bold of you of you think anyone will be able to reach it in case of political turmoil.
I remember visiting Egypt with my family in the late 90s and remember that the economic situation of the country was pretty good. They had a quite strong pound (circa $1 = 3 EGP) and pretty calm atmosphere and remember the people were not that commercialised. The last time we went in 2018, we were pretty shocked how things have drastically changed. It became so overcrowded, polluted and chaotic. According to some random locals we spoke with, the current government is literally working against its own population and not to mention the opression and suffocation caused on a daily basis especially by the police. Also why change Cairo, which is a city so full of history and character to a souless, artificial capital where all the elite will live? This will create nothing but social segregation and tensions, in my humble opinion. Of course, the choice is entirely theirs. It's a pity how such a beautiful country with very rich history is being destroyed by the mafia politicians (similar to many Balkan countries for example).
Not. True. No one. In Egypt. Will say that the government is working against the people
the dollar costs around 18. egyptian pounds now. pretty sad stuff.
@@bandyyploy it should be 22. Pound. To bring more investment
we still that bro and all what in this video is lies to spread chaos in our belove Egypt
@@bandyyploy sir i think you got it mixed up. also a country's currency isnt necessarily an accurate reflection of its economy. take the japanese yen and the chinese yuan for instance.
in Brasil we had a similar experience; they made Brasília a city with extremely wide streets and squares to make it harder (but not impossible, as we recently saw) to gather protesters; while in Rio, the old capital, the narrow streets surrounding Catete palace would be easily filled with people. it’s all about moving the power away from us.
None of your business
Lula is god
The creation of Versailles, 12 miles from Paris, was one of the factors leading to the French Revolution. It isolated the king from the people so he had no idea what was really happening in Paris. Ignoring the peasants is risky.
They don't have internet and social media , Nowadays we know everything everywhere,
When there is a crisis, at least he has a choice to go. : )
@@boiboiboi1419 True. But the issue now is: how do you project power from afar? Hard to control the masses if you have to travel to where the masses congregate. What Egypt is doing, is creating a logistical nightmare for when the next time, the streets of Cairo rise up, the Egyptian Government will now have to fight their way into the city center from outside the city's walls (and defenses). It's almost as if Egypt's government has thrown in the towel on trying to control Cairo.
@@jingkunouyang8295 Sadly that didn’t stop him and his wife from being beheaded.
I wonder if during their next revolution/revolt/rebellion we'll see tens of thousands of women march to the new capital just like when women marched from Paris to Versailles in the appropriately named Women's March on Versailles 1789. That march, which precipitated the King's move (and the National Assembly) from Versailles to Paris, was a huge turning point in the French Revolution.
One of the worries for me in this plan is that they are bound to create another traffic nightmare: The seperation of residential areas from commercial areas. If you give people the opportunity to walk to work or walk to the shops, they will do it. That has been proven over and over again. But if you force people to drive by only offering flats/houses far away from their place of work, traffic will become a problem eventually. You can somewhat counteract that problem with good public transport, but even the best public transport will not fix bad city design.
Very well said.
bros building a city in a desert like a city skylines beginner, take note that the new capital has no nearby river, probably blaming Ethiopia for the new capital inaccessibility of water/sewage
How do they expect to attract low-income workers such as janitors, cleaners and restaurant workers to service the city if there is no low-income housing nor cheap way to commute available?
Worries?
The thing is,that is what the middle and upper class Egyptians want to keep the lower classes at bay. In fact, most of them do not want public transport near exclusively middle and upper class cities like New Cairo for that reason, though they do require their labor.
You know the Iranian shah, French royalty, etc ... also lived in isolated palaces. It had the opposite effect that Sisi is looking for -- it angered the people even more. It acted as greater motivation and didn't deter the revolution, it fueled it. It made it easier for the serfs to look around and realize just how out of touch and how different royalties life is compared to the people.
Sure buddy but this is the modern world lol
I think he is thinking of the Syrian solution (the shah didn't try to use real force to stop the revolution).
Several times in the past couple of years, there were protest attempts but it was easily shut down by the law enforcement. Tahrir Square now is crowded by police officers wearing civilian clothing and asking pedestrians about where are they going. And even search their phones and check social media for anti-government posts. Happened to me and alot of my friends. It's really inhumane.
😭😭😭💔💔 same.
cap.
i won't argue that this isn't true but they don't go that far
@@glow.8538 it's not true, there are no cops in the tahrir square and nobody ever checks your phone. i really dont know why people say this.
@@masao2922 people say that because it happens frequently and it peaked around 11/11/2022 when a protest attempt was supposed to happen. Just ask around
There's another unknown ticking time-bomb in Cairo: water - or the lack thereof. We've spent a lot of time researching the Nile droughts, Middle Eastern water scarcity and solutions for it, while working on our Nile and desalination videos, and... it doesn't look good: artificial upscale urban developments in the desert mean diverting huge amounts of water away from the city where it is badly needed.
You're asking too much of the Masri. They lack the funds and the expertise for that, they've relied on foreign investors and expat skilled labors to build their utilities.
Another ticking time-bomb in Cairo = technology
@Bell Olli not even remotely possible, when you're ruled by a military junta that kills anyone trying to oppose them.
@Bell Olli If only the Masri s problems were that simple
Not enough water... and also too much, The nearby Nile Delta, a heavily populated and intensively farmed area, is likely to be an early casualty of rising sea levels, along with South Florida, New Orleans, Shanghai, and a host of other cities and low-lying coastal/delta/estuarine areas around the world - nearly all of them heavily populated and/or intensively farmed. Parts of Cairo will be at risk of flooding - by brine or salt-water and not the kind that might ease the fresh-water shortage unless there is a breakthrough in cheap desalination technology. But even if the city is not flooded the loss of the delta area means the loss of a large proportion of the food-growing areas that feed the megacity. Added to this, the refugees from the delta will swell the numbers of impoverished slum dwellers, put unbearable strain on already poor public services, and add to the instability of the entire region. This is not a place with a rosy future... but then where is?
One of the rare cities where it's more affordable to live in the center of the city than outside. Extremely fascinating!
The video doesn’t really explain it well but at the Nile many illegal houses have ruined agricultural land which is why people are being forced out of them to even better homes with water/electricity.
@@megasellz6051 HELP! I cant find better History-Coverage and Flaws-in-School-System Coverage than the CRT- and GOP-Videos of "Some More News", so im at my Means End.
I thought that a lot of american cities were in the same case? Like Oklahoma city, with an impoverished center and a wealthy and gigantic suburb?
No it's not
Except Zamalek, which is like mini manhattan!
As an Egyptian I want to thank you for highlighting this
Could you please tell me what you are thanking him for?
@@Mmanious idk😂😂
@@Mmanious because he highlighted a problem we face
@@hageraliart The new capital of Al Sisi is designed to ward off any revolution. Did you expect a revolution? What problems are you facing specifically?
@@Mmanious he spends all the money egypt has on random projects and drives the economy into the ground and arrests people who talk badly about him instead of doing anything mildly useful or helpful to the people
Very accurate analysis of what’s currently happening in Egypt…very unfortunate but very true! Thank you for sharing and raising awareness!
Pretty good analysis but he mixed between two different revolutions 2011 and 2013
It was one of the reasons that they built Brasilia city as a new capital in Brazil. Brasilia was designed for driving, not for walking.
Same for Astana in Kazakhstan
That was one of the main point of the palace of Versailles, being a bit removed from Paris. In the end, it prevented nothing.
The 1800s are very different from today
@@FC-hj9ub This was late 1600s
Napoleon III went the extra mile, widening Paris' boulevards just like Sisi's done do Cairo's streets. It's one of the many reasons why the Paris Commune revolt in 1871 was a failure. So yes, while the French monarchy eventually fell, these tactics do still have a history of working.
Because France is not a desert.
I mean, they delayed long enough to make it someone else's problem, so it did work. The first two kings in Versailles, Louis 14th & Louis 15th, are the longest tenured kings in French history. Both died of illness in bed.
Educational and informative. Thank you for all the hard work.
The video perfectly illustrated the situation in Egypt right now however in real life, it even more worse than what have been illustrated in the video. He destroyed all the well known places In Cairo like zamalek area. He eliminated the middle class. You either have to be very rich to be able to access those areas like zayed or new cairo. Or very poor with zero facility and with no affordability to buy even a bread and ofc you can access only the poor areas which are all cairo basically except of zayed, new captial, new cairo..etc. I went back home after 5 years, he eliminated the middle class. Middle class people can’t even keep up with the inflation happening there. We can’t talk, we can’t protest and we can’t do anything. Which don’t give us any option other than leaving the country. Today 90% of the educated middle class people outside Egypt. The rest who are under poverty line are there as they don’t have any other option. He literally destroyed Egypt and above all, all our country’s projects right now are under only 2 countries. You better guess it correctly :)
كومنتك ممتاز و الله 👍👍 و البلدين السعودية و الامارات اللي شاريين البلد 😂
👍👌💙
Brotherhood supporters think they are into something
True, middle class no longer exists in Egypt
Bro why did your people cant overthrow him like hosseini mubarak
This is the exactly same thing that happened here in Brazil. The government moved the capital from Rio de Janeiro to Brasilia, a "desert" like place that is harder for the majority of the people to reach and protest.
Vc é de Brasília?? É bem normal protestos aqui, e na época pode ter tido os motivos para a mudança, mas hj todos sabem funcionou. RJ não funciona nem com a administração do próprio estado, quem dirá do Brasil.
@@beatrizcastelobranco4713 é verdade. Acho q Brasília é mais estável q RJ. O governo precisa de algum lugar onde podem executar administração. Tbm onde a gente podem sentir segura. Mas tampouco não acho q seja uma boa ideia deixar que os bandas dominem o país. 🥲
You could argue the same thing about Washington DC. It was built in the middle of a malarial swamp hundreds of miles from any major population center. After a couple centuries it has become a modern urban city all to itself One of the goals of Brasilia was to also draw people into the interior of the country and to encourage development outside of the traditional coastal cities where much of Brazil's population was historically. How successful that actually turned out in practice can be debated, but there were some very clear goals in mind when it was built. Being far from protests was not actually a design goal even if the broad streets (also found in the District of Columbia) and planned nature were designed in part to be able to control large crowds.
Did they succeed to prevent it?
Wow.. I'm beginning to see the pattern. There is a comment I'd read just prior to your posting, from someone in Myanmar; apparently, a very similar situation has occurred there. Its causing me some discomfort to consider this, but humanity may be on the verge of a serious conflict of some kind. The planet is drying up, and there will be no way to amend the problems to arise from that. 😟 No matter what happens, stay safe. Survive. ♾☮💝☯️♾
"The real reason Egypt is moving its capital" Me: This is not just about making it harder for people to protest the government, is it? ***Watches video*** Me: Oh...it is.
LOL this comment made my day! 😂 Thanks!
Canadian Truckers : I hope you guys care about me. Not only commenting on third world countries, but forgetting what is happening near you.
What did anti-government protests really achieve the past 10 years in Egypt other than causing a civil war?
@@MrPro897 Middle Eastern muslim majority countries tend to live in either civil war or brutal dictatorship lol
@@MrPro897 Egypt's revolution didn't end up in a civil war. You're thinking of Syria and Yemen.
As an egyptian, im sad im still poor
Wow amazing video! So insightful! Thank You!
Historically if the capital city gets moved it's usually a bad sign. If it gets moved to middle of nowhere it's a usually a really bad sign.
oh ohh
Washington, DC
Washington DC was the middle of nowhere when it was built, as was St Petersburg, and Salvador.
@@samsonsoturian6013 Both of those were in middle of nowhere, BUT in strategic location. This is middle of nowhere without any strategic value
@@Dukenukem yeah, in this case some rich dude's desire to get out of the city probably isn't going to result in any permanent transfer.
The kings of France tried to relocate the capital and make Paris more difficult to barricade. And everyone lived happily ever after. The kings kept the crowns on their heads and their heads on their shoulders.
Hopefully Sisi gets the Versailles treatment. Inshallah 🙏
Poor people usually have children to bring in more income, but then you just have alot more poor people... who will have more children raised in poverty. The issue: attempting population control without a genocide. The solution: governmentally incentivized vasectomies. Population is effectively reigned in without any killing. An anti-boom with an economy boost. World leaders are pretty braindead when the bare minimum is needed and not necessitated.
A revolution today is quite a bit different than a revolution 300 years ago. Information technology is an enormous game changer and military gear has also changed drastically, as well as the scale in which it can be implemented. If both of you have muskets and cannons, thats okay, but air power, tanks, snipers, all that stuff, that is not something protesters can just get their hands on.
Egypt’s next revolution will feature Egyptian Napoleon, and he will invade all of the Middle Eastern countries surrounding it, just like Mohamed Ali of Egypt and Napoleon
Akhenaton did that too and his legacy was destroyed 😁
Good job guys. Great video and very well oriented
Here in Brazil they did the same almost 60 years ago: Rio de Janeiro was the capital.
To quote a certain KZheadr: “Bigly big buildings in this new bigly big city”
Don't forget the bigly big roads wih bigly big jams.
Adam Something?
@@reaperz5677 yes
@@reaperz5677 yeah i can't remember his surname
@@reaperz5677 *Big Epic Engineering Channel
It's simply the way for the ruling class to physically separate itself from the poor masses of Egypt with them paying for it.
I see "somebody" watched the video "The real reason Egypt is moving its capital" by the Vox channel.
@@DoahnKea_Tuber No, I got Sissi on the phone the other day, he told me
the poor masses deserve what they're getting, governments reflect the masses and not the opposite
@@epicapexplays8467 I hate to admit but you are totally correct! I am an Egyptian, and if I tell you about the corruption that is going on from the lowest class to the upper class you would not believe me! corruption level in Egypt is ASTRONOMICAL!
@@epicapexplays8467 People cant fight government bc they are ignorant and uneducated, do not blame people for oppresion
Incredibly informative, thank you
As an Egyptian, I can confirm this is true, it's to make sure people can't revolt against our corrupt government.
¿Y qué clase de Revolución pueden tener ustedes? Solamente se inclinarán inexorablemente al radicalismo religioso. Volverán otra vez al caos, el odio y la violencia. Y eso no será mejor de lo que tienen ahora. ¿Acaso quieren ser como Libia?
Sisi has new income from gas reserves in the see and the new Suez Canal that has doubled its capacity!
@@elvishiekios8826 bunch of lies.
Major lie lol. Right now there is literally a major power outage all over the country due to insufficient gas supply to the power plants @@elvishiekios8826
Egypt isn't the only country moving their capital city because of revolutions. Myanmar also did this.
Did it succeed ? I hope not
@@NaderNabilart nope they’re in shambles
you could argue both of those current governments are only in power because of military coup
@@A.S.D442 Yeah, parts of the country are in an ongoing insurgency.
W Myanmar
I've been there ~1 week ago. That entire "city" is made of very wide roads(3+ lanes each side) and just a bunch of building blocks, making it impossible to move in the Cairo region without a car, forcing them into big traffic jams for any kind of shopping or visit to the city. It's new and yet so broken from the start...
There are buses and light rails to get there. Monorails is also one of them and a planned high speed rail connection with other cities in Egypt
@Zaydan Naufal that's a horrible plan but then again the whole thing is awful but at least cheap or free transit would make it better
@@IllusiveDude no metro connection though? Even though tho Cairo’s red or green line could easily be extended to the new city? Oh wait I forgot the metro is for the poor and suppressed
@Zaydan Naufal I am from Singapore. Nope, we are trying to move away from cars too and promote more transit, cycling and walking.
@Zaydan Naufal no walking or biking? Then what you will do after get in your destination? Call a taxi? That waste of money Mix use area is much better because you dont need walk to long for go to commercial area
Egypt's new captial situation reminds me of the situation in Myanmar. As both rulers of the countries prioritize keeping a distance between their government and the people, so that the government could govern and not be toppled.
yeah it is☹
if the people willing to topple a government they will and it doesn't matter where is the government location.
@@myname2938 True, but if it is physically difficult, then people *may* be less willing.
@@myname2938 It's much harder to topple a government if you have to cross a few hundred miles of desert while being shot at by the airforce.
None of your business
"Cairo, that's in Egypt" - Team America
There's a universal disdain for poor people amongst authoritarians.
It's a reminder of their ineffectiveness
The Egyptian middle and upper class(which is heavily secularised) has valid reasons to segregate itself from the conservative Islamist lower classes, especially if you are a woman
well the new gov is getting rid of slums and rebuilding appropriate residential buildings for free
@@geraldmaxwell3277 correct and thank you
@@geraldmaxwell3277 it's not that they are Islamist thus they become lower class, it's bcs they are lower class that they subscribe to Islamism. if the system is built to be more inclusive to people, there'll be less people subscribing to fundamentalist ideologies
It’s like a friend of mine, when there’s too much clutter, he just moves to another room of the house
HowToBasic:
what's his solution when he runs out of rooms because they're all cluttered?
@@hermask815 He moves to another house
@@hermask815 he buys another house, apparently he has enough money
I think it's a smart move but seeing it take place with an authoritarian government and a whole population is definitely so messed up
Thank you for this honest informative vid
Great content. Very informative.
The most important thing a city can do is…invest in a sprawling subway system. Seoul has 640 stations. Cairo has 74. Makes it much easier to spread housing out when people can move around easy. (And, Seoul still has an affordable housing problem.)
I'd put water supply, public services (sanitation, fire, medical), military defensibility, and adequate transport for food & goods above it ... but just barely. spreading housing out is a terrible thing to do to the climate and the food supply. we all need to stop that.
Cairo also builds plenty of Metro stations everywhere and a HSR network
unfortunately we don't have the money to invest in anything anymore .
I live in Sheikh Zayed, far from the crowded areas (and I'm grateful for that), but I've been to Tahrir Square many times. Not once have I been there without seeing armed police officers somewhere near. The fact that Sisi is building many new bridges across Cairo has become sort of a meme for us Egyptians.
مانتم النخبة يا أمنية عيشين في الشيخ زايد وسيبين الشعب المصري يعفن
@@kafa371 اي علاقة اللي انت بتقوله باللي هي كاتباه🤨
@@kafa371 They didn't do anything wrong. Don't get angry at the wrong person here .. real estate developers along with state urban planning officials are the actual proplem, they built these suburbs and admittedly neglected Cairo and the rest of Egypt. It makes them more money that way.
@@mahmoudbadr2798 أية يا محمد كلامي واضح مشمحتاج كتلوج
@@NaderNabilart يعم نادر انا لا احقد على احد ولا اغضب من احد انا اتكلم ان طالما هناك طلب على هذة العقارات وهناك مصرين يشترون في هذة المدن فلا يوجد مشكلة واسف على سوئ الفهم وانا متأكد يا مستر نادر انك بتعرف عربي
I am an Egyptian and this is absolutely true ...
…yea…
Great thought process. Thank you
I'm watching this from Myanmar (Burma). And I'm surprised that all military government thinks the same. In 2005, Myanmar military government constructed and moved the capital city to the middle of the country where it's 320km north of the Yangon city which is Myanmar's largest city and also the capital city. It's crazier than Egypt because they moved it to the completely different place and they circle it with underground tunnels, military bases and police check points.
Dictators copy one another.
Exact same happened in Sri Lanka, and see how it ended up
Paranoia. Nigeria Nigeria did the same 30 years ago. Due to the fact that a lot of coups happened to the military government. Although Abuja is a lot less congested now compared to Lagos.
@@Userx6n9h8s7f5 21
@@naijapean Yes but Lagos is no less congested, right?
I was slightly annoyed that you kept on referring to the new city as "New Administrative Capital" instead of using its real name as if it was a mystery. Turns out the name is exactly this - New Administrative Capital. Most boring capital name ever. I bet it will be appear in multiple pub quizzes and other trivia games.
I cant find better History-Coverage and Flaws-in-Schools Coverage than the CRT- and GOP-Videos of "Some More News", so im at my Mean's End. Anyone some some for me to check out?
This is not the definitive name of the capital. They are organizing a competition for kids in school to chose the best name that suits the new capital
the name hasnt been decided yet.
Top notch stuff Vox!
This reminds me so much of Brasilia and the plan to move the capital from Rio de Janeiro in 1958. Juscelino Kubitschek had said the exact same thing and wanted to "centralize" the government in Central Brazil, but the real truth was that he wanted the government to run away from the Rio de Janeiro masses. Point of note: it was also during this time that the favelas were rapidly growing in size across Rio de Janeiro and the government, instead of doing something to alleviate the social ills of Rio de Janeiro, decided to build a total new capital out of scratch within the Brazilian Savanah. Guess what: the masses had to move to Brasilia as well to work for the upper class politicians and other upper class bureaucrats and many favelas started mushrooming across Brasilia, which led it to have the exact social ills that castigate Rio de Janeiro to this day. Sad, but truth!
Brasilia in comparison is sane and well thought. Don't get me wrong, underlying idea is similar. But while in Brasilia outside of that giant park (avenue?) for the pretty the city feels... reasonable. And New Administrative Capital is so excessive. Biggest flagpole, Biggest skyscraper, x-lane highways, billions of $ for monorail where tram or rail/underground line would do. And of course, a giant park - in the desert. So... I guess you at least had saner politicians than Egypt?
@@juliuszkocinski7478 Brasilia is "all right" within the rich neighbourhoods ( Asa Norte and Lago Sul), but it is a horrible place to live if you can only afford to live in the suburbs/ in the favelas - the local lost control of it in the 80s when this once organized and tranquil city ended up having to deal with a lot of social issues, though. And nope, I hate to disappoint you but Brazilian politicians are 99% of the time a whole bunch of mafia rulers whom only care about getting rich through the social fabric of the country and through public funds, unfortunately.
Just like what was done in Brazil during the 50's, with the construction of Brasília right in the middle of the South American continent where pretty much NO ONE lived.
To encourage pple to spread out
@@filbao8113 yea which totally did not happen
@@brunoborges7508 2.5 million people are living there now dude. The States nearby have grow too because of the nearby capital.
Versailles, Naypyidaw, Nusantara, Egypt's new capital-all these new, shiny cities are for rulers who want to be far from the masses and their legitimate demands.
What makes you think a protestor is right or that he represents the people by definition? Egypt is 100 million and protests are barely 200k people.
You got Nusantara wrong here...
Nusantara is not a new idea, though. Soekarno, our first president had planned for Palangka Raya to be the new capital city of Indonesia. He was replaced with Soeharto who didn't want that. He also saddled us with a terrible economy, so the next presidents were tasked with improving our economy. Now that Papua is a province of Indonesia, Palangka Raya is no longer the center of the country, but still in the same island island so Nusantara is built in Borneo as well. And it's going to be completed long after Jokowi is gone (his terms are used up). The stated intention is to move closer to the rest of Indonesia... make of this as you wish.
Nusantara is being built because Jakarta is actually sinking
Canberra, Washington, Brasilia, Sejong are all new capitals.
Since pharaoh time the policy of oppressive governments did not change
Intellectuals in the comments: "Yes, just like Versailles...." Me: "So it's just like Mordor..."
I like how the vid is talking how the city is made to suppress the people Yet most comments are talking about traffic 🤣🤣
Actually this would be the worst plan ever to suppress the people as you can have million way better plans that are more cost effective, that's why we just ignored that part Traffic and Overpopulation on the other hand are real problems in Cairo and the video didn't give you any real solutions for them
you always have comment waves with different topics. it's not like that anymore
Right? Must be nice you only worry being the traffic But if you're Egyptian then you know most of these new cities are also meant to cater to rich foreigners looking for vacation homes The new Disney world they're building infuriates me 😤
@@Omer1996E.C um no they don't "care about their cars" they are actually telling everyone to build less car infrastructure (which leads to better driving for the few people who do drive but that's not most people if you have alternatives)
@@jan-lukas @MeChupaUnHuevon You two are missing the point. Whatever it is that you care about, it is not the main topic of this video or the main concern of the people of Cairo, if it's not the dictator, who is trying to suppress the people.
ironically, "tahrir" means "liberation".
What do you mean sarcastically?
@@abdoahmed-ob7jn no they mean ironically
@@didinesg3324 Nobody suffers like us and I can't stand hearing this without a response
No it mean koshari
Then its called Liberation Squere
As an Egyptian, you've nailed it! Every point is spot on...
Thanks for the video!
Now imagine if they'd just spent all that money on developing the people? Dictatorships will forever be a mental deficiency to me
don't just follow what they say bilndly. In this video they have given no evidence to support their theory. This is all their "opinion" which they present as facts. all of the western media is like this. just opinions instead of letting audience form their own opinion about the issue. And I am not even egyptian btw.
@@greenweed3253 neither am I. But I live in proximity to Egypt and I have known this story FOR MONTHS (can't remember when exactly) that video is not deviated from the reality
@@joey8033 are you sure they didn't develope the people 🤔
@@greenweed3253 bro , do u wanna know if it's real or nor , come to Egypt and walk with Camera and film everything bad u watch , and u'll be in jail, uf ur Egyptian just talk against Sisi's political, and u'll be dead in prison, i don't say this is wrong cuz the people in Egypt was say the same words about the new capital
@@user-or1rm1ol3q What are you talking about about developing people? Are you talking about the tablet system for high school students, cheating in exams, worthless social services, or social aid, which costs $150 in the country you live in, starting at $600, or when you talk about repressive policies and injustice? And the imprisonment of political detainees and the killing of innocents in Sinai and the operation Sirli in the Western Desert. Do not talk to me about the development of people and you are one of the least human beings in the world, and all because of Sisi and his supporters who always compare Egypt with Syria and Iraq and have weak eyesight and do not compare it to the Netherlands , its was the zero country For example, the zero state when Egypt was at its peak
A tyranny is a tyranny wherever its capital may move to.
Egypt is Wonderland for every Pharaohs of every decades
THANK YOU FINALLY SOMEONE SAID IT
Shut the F up okay, if you want another Iran in the region keep talking, if you don't then stop saying your opinion please.
Ours was burned by our friends in 1814. Since then we have saved them in 2 world wars.
@@mochiebellina8190Well, the government lived on. Only bad thing is that they burned the white house, the executive branch of the United States. The real government is Congress with the executive branch on-top of it etc
I remember leaving Egypt as a kid with my mom and 2 siblings at the end of January 2011. this was around the time of the revolution. it was a scary day that I still remember. my mom was really scared we'll get caught. the place was really crowded. I remember Cairo's airport was packed and people were trying to leave the country. I was fortunate enough to leave the country but many many people aren't. most of my family still reside in Egypt and it's not pretty there. Cairo is my home city. I was born there and I lived there until I turned about 5 years old, that's when we left. the economic situation in Egypt is really really bad and it's sad seeing that all the efforts towards the new capital is just to shut people up
i feel u bro, i moved from Cairo in about April 2013 because of the revolution. we couldn't leave earlier because of visa problems
ايه الهري ده يا ابني ؟؟؟
and guess who is mostly paying for the new capital?
انت من ضمن المصريين العرة اللي بيسيبو بلدهم وقت الأازمات بس اللي زيك قليلين الحمدلله
@@kinghorus1 هاسيب مصر ان شاء الله قريب. ادعيلي
Great video! A scale when showing the map would be very helpful
Imagine focusing entire time on preventing protests instead of doing work that would not lead to people protesting
What if this work has been done for 8 years and they did not bother to mention a bit of it ?
@@mostafafawaz7805 How does Sisi got power?
@@bunyaminyilmaz3798 by an election following a nationwide revolution in 2013
@@bunyaminyilmaz3798 from egyptian whom didn't want islamic brotherhood control the country.
@@bunyaminyilmaz3798 by coup
Is it just me, or does it always seem sketchy every time some government decides to build a new capital?
Governments worry about 2 things.. Corruption & Safety.
The USA did it too.
@@CBbyamarNot really, Washington DC has been our capitol for almost a decade. The only reason it became our capitol is because it was called Washington DC, aka named after America’s founder
Due to government awkward policies, there’s a lot of vacant apartments in Cairo and all of Egypt cities. The solution is decentralization of government services and administration centers where they will be relocated into the provinces.
The beauty of Egypt 🇪🇬 is in Cairo.. The Nile river is the beating heart of Egypt 🇪🇬🇹🇳🫒🥖
As an Egyptian citizen i can say that the situation here is even worse . Here if you typed a single word including revolution or to protest they I'll find you and put you in jail without any humanity rights or fair trial . There are around 60 thousands prisoners of consciense in Egypt now . starting another revolution in cairo nowadays is almost impossible. And to start a revolution in that new capital is a science fiction story lol
All my support from Tunisia 🥰
YOU CAN
That is why it ecplains how smart Sisi is compared to his American rivals who intentionally conspirated against him
whom u saying??? western ppl?? cuz same govt. was put by our ideal western politician. so blame goes to our ideal politician who overthrew the democratically elected Morsi just bcuz he was against western governance n critics...
So. That mean only. 60 thousands people. Want. Revolution. And the red. Of. Egyptians. Who are 103 millions. They don't want revolution right🤔
The only mistake of the video is that the area that built in the 18 hundreds wasn't built by the British but it was the project of Khediv Ismael before the British comes to Egypt. That's actually a trend in seeing all of African history that everything must be built in modern times by the colonisers.
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Dude.. the video is full of mistakes!
@@BasMekhailshare with us please
@@BasMekhail how
In Brazil, Brasilia has been built in the sixties with similar purpose. For an example, less than 4 years after its inauguration, a military coup happened. In Rio de Janeiro, the former capital, it would have been much more difficult, as we can state by observing the fact that there was some atttempts that fail, such in 1954, 1955.
Lots of efforts done on the video, which is appreciated, really. I would suggest as you've created a video about your theory about the "new capital" that you create a video about the actual facts of improvements in Egypt in any of the sectors and as you've stated in the video all the theorized down sides you should've added theories about the good intentions of everything being developed right now here at Egypt if your goal is actually to raise awareness of everything going on here.
Imagine having such a dictator brain that instead of having a car free, walkable, public transit oriented city with public utilities..you rebuild the giant capital out of scratch spending billions which would have same problems.
I’ve read a lot about how designing walkable cities is the best solution to solve traffic issues in any city but that cannot be the case in the middle east for most of the year the weather is unbearably hot and you cannot move from one place to another unless you’re in a car or public transportation walkable cities could work in other places but not the Middle East and specifically Cairo
@@Dehydratedfer Ehm, what? You know, that streets and cars make a city hotter while trees and other plants make the air cooler?
It won't have the same problems though because very few people will actually live there. It's not supposed to solve traffic or housing problems, it's supposed to protect the dictator from popular uprisings.
@@Dehydratedfer people in the Middle East survived and thrived for thousands of years, with long distance trade routes and moving armies to fight wars, spending their days outdoors and working before the invention of air conditioning or cars. It's literally where some of the first ever cities and buildings were made
@@Dehydratedfer If anything, planting trees and making it more walkable with proper public transportation will make cities more cooler and I say this as someone from a third world country who live in 48 Degree Celsius in summer.
Sounds like a great way to swindle government fund through construction projects
It absolutely is. The corruption is so in the open that President Sisi says the company responsible for building the New Capital (which is majority owned by Egypt's military) wants to RENT the govt district to the Egyptian state for 4 billion Egyptian pounds a year Most states have a military. Egypt's military has a state
Happening in my country Indonesia too. And.. one of the project is proven dubious (KCIC Bandung, originally planned as B2B scheme.. turns out burdening national revenue and potentially a debt trap). Recently there is shocking murder scandal cover-up in Indonesian National Police. It's a hint of corruption in the government.
Also The Line in Saudi
also most of The US's new infrastructure funding
Thank you I am from Egypt 🇪🇬 I greet you
EVERY FAMILY HAS SOMEONE WHO BREAKS THE CHAIN OF POVERTY IN THAT FAMILY,I PRAY YOU BE THE ONE
You are right, to be a successful person in life require him or her of hard work and time
Thanks for introducting me to Mr Jackson Williams.
My first investment with Mr Jackson Williams gave me profit of over $100,000 Us dollars
Natural, there’s a lot of math involved in cryto trading and forex trading,
but this is often presented in forms of daunting technical charts, indicators, patterns.
Total idiocy. He really thinks moving the government away and making it harder to protest will stop him being ousted in a coup. He of all people should know that “the people” can only depose a leader *when the military let them*. He could run the government from a literal fortress and it wouldn’t protect him when the next coup comes around. There will always be another military commander ready to stand their troops down, let the public do the work, then ride in and claim power.
And he's driving our country into bankruptcy.
Dude he is the military 😂
@@essammohamed1568 and there will always be someone under him who thinks they can do better, who will let the protesting public overthrow him before taking control. Rinse and repeat
Exactly, total idiocy; that's why you should not believe it
Ironically enough he came in power through a coup
Behind all the rationale and justification, it's also about awarding contracts to families and cronies
This is very good and accurate video 👍👍👍
Nigeria is facing a similar situation with lagos, but the reason lagos is si densely populated in my opinion is that they're little opportunities in the other states so a lot of people have to move to lagos
The president should really be able to tackle the populous directly. But he is too much of a Sisi
good pun
Versailles was the glory of the sun king (Louis the 14th) He removed the government to there, away from Paris and it’s troublesome population. He turned Versailles into gilded cage to keep an eye on the nobility. It was a brilliant move. Yet within 100 years, the royal family had isolated itself from the people. They became ever more withdrawn and remote from the growing troubles in the land. By 1789, it exploded into Revolution which led to the downfall of the king and queen and their deaths. Versailles was abandoned for decades. Even after the restoration, Versailles remained mostly unused. Today, it’s a museum and tourist attraction. I wonder what will happen to this monument to a dictators vanity
No. Versailles is part of the Parisian suburbia, where most of the people live. Under Louis XIV most Parisian industry was already around Paris not inside and Versailles was part of a manufacturing hub comprising boroughs such as Marly, Meudon. The reason for the move was that Paris was the business city where real estate was going way too over the top for the installation of new manufactures and for another castle to be built. It was a matter of budget. The royals loved hunting and it had become too costly to throw hunting parties from Paris.
great reporting
Thanks for showing the truth 🙌
Anyone else here is Egyptian ? في مصريين هنا ولا ان لوحدي ؟
انت لوحدك للاسف
@@sournectarine8343 للاسف
As an Egyptian, I must admit that you guys made a wonderful piece of Documentary right there. You only stated true Facts, unlike what most documentaries about Egypt do. Huge props to you guys and much much love!
يعني يا جدع بذمتك رايحين يعملو عاصمة ادارية عشان محدش هيعرف يروح يتظاهر هناك فيبقو يتظاهرو في التحرير براحتهم ؟!!😂😂
@@TheHishamzaki مو لازم يكون هذا السبب ١٠٠٪ لكن قد بكون احد الاسباب
And me as an Egyptian.. I must admit that nothing is true in that video.. I am not only an Egyptian.. but I am doing my PhD studies in Architecture and Urban Planning.. I really feel sorry for Egyptians like you.. who hates any progress that take place in Egypt.. maybe due to some ideological backgrounds..
@@TheHishamzaki هو أحد الأسباب, لكنه أكيد مش الوحيد وانت عارف كده كويس.
@@themidox89 Believe me, I am not being supportive of the Idea. It disgusts me. I was only trying to show respect to them for sharing at least some part of the Truth.
Amazing video !! What is the name of the song at the end ? 🥰🥰
Love Egypt From Saudi Arabia 🇪🇬🇸🇦
This was a fantastic segment, and I saw it just in time for my presentation on Cairo, in my AP class!. Thank you very much, Vox.
WOW! Now that is a perspective that I didn't imagine. I highly enjoyed Mohamed El Shahed's input. He has a very classy way of addressing this catastrophe and I bet if there was an army of people like him there would be no problem.
He's probably in prison right now or at least they're making his life hard
@@amarrevolver4452 That is a very speculative thing to say.
@@AhmedAdly11 people got worse treatment for less
@@amarrevolver4452 That is a very subjective reply as well. Sometimes, during conversations, there comes a point where one person keeps answering back with increasingly absurd responses. Seems this could become one of those. Please leave me alone.
@@AhmedAdly11 he has a point. our lovely government has ruined lives for far less. pretty educated speculation, I'd say.
that's awesome explanation
That's a very interesting concept indeed
almost like the sabe happened to Brasil with Brasília
@Gabriel Henrique it is not related tô autoritarhism, but it hás relation with keeping away People from the goverment
At least Brasilia was meant to create an economic center in the middle of an underdevelopped region. New Cairo is meant for rich people to live seperately from poor ones.
And exactly like Naypyidaw in Myanmar.
I swear I knew video would conclude with president trying to remove a way for people to protest. Let's face it Egyptians are very good at protesting and the political leaders know this to be very dangerous.
رابعة
Egyptians are fearless people. With courage and desire to get what they want. No matter how far you go they will keep coming. And also very wise
Very interesting
Love great Egypt from Canada 🇪🇬🇨🇦❤Complete the map of Egypt 🇪🇬🇨🇦👍🏻
People in the comments are saying that this is the "new Versailles", and this is a useful way to look at it from a Western viewpoint, but for thousands of years, the Pharoahs of Egypt have always built their own cities from Abydos, Amarna and Thinis in pre-modern ages to Nasr City, 6th of October city and New Obour City in modern-day, which are really just dysfunctional mega-suburbs. The New Administrative Capital takes the cake. We're heading to a future where the secular elite of Egypt will be playing on the lush golf courses of their gated suburbs while people outside the bubble go thirsty, and religious clerics rot alongside liberal activists in jail. Shame on Sisi.
All the rulers, throughout history, have the same and only concern: maintain their power.
@@zesideral fact
Why do you mention liberals in a good way?
@@bobbyjones8091 whats wrong with advocating for civil rights?
this is type of situation often lead to revolution
Great video
Well done 👍
I live in Cairo and I feel like I live in a nightmare. I get lost whenever I go out lots of changes in the streets. Becoming harder and harder to go out or even walk.Not to mention I feel totally unsafe because of the many constructions. Building this new city gave me the feeling that we are seen as garbage, and they are secluding the wow high class people away from us. I hope they fix this! I stopped working and I keep having panic attacks whenever I have to go out. I don't feel safe, and I don't like that most of the people became very materialistic and selfish!
شكلك مافهمتي المقطع،المقطع يقصد ان السيسي حيعمل عاصمة جديدة بعيدة خمسين كيلو متر علي ميدان التحرير،ووسع الطرق لان لو حصلت ثورة جديدة يكون سهل تطويق الاحتجاجات في الطرق والجسر الواسعة،وايضا حكومته تكون بعيدة خمسين كيلو متر مع حراسات شديدة وقوية،حيتم قمع اي ثورة
i’m truly sorry. i hope egyptian government starts to treat this issue correctly.
Well tbh I hate the county and feel unsafe in it too but in certain areas such as 6th of October city safety isn’t really an issue
Yeah I understand. I hear a lot of stories of the true reality of Egypt. It’s becoming very hard and the people there are losing morals and are becoming very bad. Inshallah it’ll improve one day.
@@theislamicgambit4476 انا بتكلم بقي عن الواقع و اللي احنا حاسين بيه .. ماشي ده ممكن يكون سبب بس مش السبب الوحيد. كل حاجه بقت غاليه جدا العيشه بقت لا تحتمل ..كل شويه ناس بتتخطف و تتسرق أعضائها و القتل اللي بقي عيني عينك و السرقه في حجات كتير قوي بتحصل هم بيعزلونا مش اكتر بيضحكوا علينا بشويه تجديدات و كله عشان الطريق يبقي حلو و سهل للعاصمه.. الاداريه
I cannot begin explaining how grateful I am that you guys made this video.
That's how change starts, with informing the world of what is happening. I thought it was just about administration issues in Cairo solved by building a new center. Now a lot more makes sense
@@alexs1640 exactly
yaay lets make a video full of miss info to project our westerns views and raise further instability in egypt turning it into yet another iraq is that what yalll want?
@@iambador611 that's funny, a lot of pinheads like you said the same about Iraq, and yet basically every Iraqi I spoke to was glad for what happened as many had their lives improved. But sure, go ahead and speak for others
@@alexs1640 You speak to the middle-high class people of Iraqi. You can't compare that to the whole country.
That is my first time for me to hear such a sensible pov
As an Egyptian, that was so sad to watch.
Indonesia will also relocate its capital from Jakarta to East Kalimantan, likely for the same reason.
Jakarta is sinking.... so not really sure if it's the same. Sisi is a dictator a military one. I don't think Indonesia has a military dic5
@@arifahmedkhan9999 Exactly
As for avoiding protest, could be. But people will protest in Jakarta anyway because it's the center of the nation's economy. People will protest anywhere they can. Jakarta is sinking, and a lot of people inside it already moved from Jakarta to nearby satellite cities for better living. Although moving the capital is another controversy on its own, like the govt is trying hard to find investors for the new capital at times like this where almost all countries and companies is on "Survival Mode." The new capital location is also sit in an area with little chance of natural disasters. So that also could be the cause of it.
Building in the desert -- sounds like a solid plan in response to climate catastrophe.
from Egyptian brother, you describe the situation sincerely thank you