by Mahmoud Hammad
A group of investors in Badr Industrial City sent a call for help to President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi because of the obstacles being placed before investors and youth in the establishment of small and medium-size enterprises in the city, as the prices of lands for small enterprises have risen by 2,000 per cent internally between the Urban Communities Authority and Badr City Council. This increase is in Badr alone at a time when the government is giving support to large investors.
Dr. Adel Mohamed, the spokesman for the affected investors, told The Middle East Observer that the prices of industrial lands for small enterprises in Badr have increased 21 times in three years, at an average of 2,000 per cent.
“We have joined a lottery for industrial lands for small enterprises presented in January 2013 when the price was EGP300 per square meter,” he explained. “After more than a year a public draw was held in June 2014 and we won a 300-square-meter land. The price was determined at EGP715 for lands less than 1,000 square meters, which is double this price, while EGP715 was set for lands more than 1,000 square meters.” This is considered an obvious injustice to small enterprises, he said.
“We have accepted the injustice and paid 25 per cent in accordance with the terms of the agreement and the land was allocated and received,” he said.
He added that in August 2014, when applying for the construction permits, they were told by the Badr City Council officials to pay the difference in the land price which increased by 50 per cent to become EGP1,065, an increase of 345 pounds per meter retroactively after receipt and allocation of the land of less than one thousand meters by around EGP535.
He said they presented an urgent call on President El-Sisi on October 5, 2015. The investors said that after having been ignored by the Urban Communities Authority, the Ministry of Housing, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Industrial Development Authority and the Cabinet.
The states which have achieved economic progress at a fast pace depended on small enterprises, such as China and Southeast Asia, he said, adding that in Egypt they are going in the reverse direction. Any talk about supporting small enterprises and helping donor countries to small businesses is nothing more than “media” and there is nothing on the ground.
He pointed out that what happened with the Badr investors represents a clear obstacle hampering the economic progress, the facilities of investment and the small enterprises, increasing productivity and reducing unemployment.
For his part, Chairman of Badr Industrial City Investors Association Alaa El-Saktir said that the state does not pay attention to small and medium industries, adding that Badr City has not seen any encouragement or attention to projects and small industries as the other industrial cities, such as 6th of October and 10th of Ramadan City.
He explained that the investors who got lands in Badr have not been able to launch their projects because of neglect and lack of attention to small industries which are the basis of progress of nations.
As for the obstacles facing small and medium-sized enterprises in general, he said they are many, including the lack of a uniform definition of small and medium industries. The taxes authority define them in a way while the Ministry of Industry knows them in another way and this causes a problem in every stage of the project to the investor who wishes to establish a project.
