Yes, Cairo summers are indeed getting hotter — and there’s hard data to prove it. TheUrban Heat Snapshot (pdf) from British engineering consultancy Arup confirms what every Cairene already knows: the city is trapping heat at an alarming rate. The report takes a data-driven, street-level approach to understanding how heat is distributed across different urban environments, identifying the worst hotspots and highlighting cooling solutions that actually work.

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The method: Arup’s researchers analyzed a 150 sq km area in each city, selecting the hottest day of a recent extreme heat event and breaking the city down into 60k sqm hexagonal grids. Using their UHeat climate modeling tool — designed to capture how people actually experience heat, not just surface temperatures — they factored in variables like building heights, reflectivity, green and blue spaces, impermeable surfaces, and population density. The results offer a stark picture of how some neighborhoods are turning into heat traps, while others — through smarter urban planning — stay significantly cooler.

The findings: The study found that Boulaq El Daqrur is Cairo’s ultimate heat sink, registering temperatures a full 5°C higher than its surroundings at the peak of a June 2022 heatwave. The culprit? A complete lack of green space or water. On the other end of the spectrum, Qorsaya Island — where nearly 60% of the surface is covered in vegetation and water — was 6°C cooler than the city’s worst heat pockets.

This isn’t just a Cairo problem — climate change is turning up the heat across Egypt. The World Bank estimates that by mid-century, Egypt could see 1.5-3°C temperature increases, along with an average of 40 extra scorching-hot days per year. That means more extreme heat, longer heatwaves, and higher risks for vulnerable communities.

Urban de-greening has exacerbated the issue: According to a Reuters piece published last year, the three years leading up to 2020 saw Cairo lose some 911k sqm of green space as the government carried out projects to expand main roads, slashing the governorate’s trees in the process. This has left the country with 1.2 sqm of green space per capita — far below the World Health Organization’s recommended 9 sqm. This loss of green space and the resulting “urban heat island” effect can have significant health implications, something that will only be exacerbated as heat waves become more frequent with climate change.

THE GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSE-

The gov’t is responding by aiming to build smarter, cooler cities: Egypt’s urban planners are taking note of concerns about heat safety — and doubling down on green architecture to combat rising temperatures. A government source at the Housing Ministry told EnterpriseAM that the country’s urban expansion strategy is prioritizing climate-resilient construction.

The push for green architecture isn’t new: Egypt started integrating sustainability measures into its new cities as early as the 1990s, incorporating tree cover, spatial planning, and urban aesthetics. But now, with extreme heat becoming a growing threat, the approach is getting a major upgrade.

COP27 was the turning point: Egypt’s green-building push got a major boost at COP27, where policymakers emphasized the importance of environmentally friendly construction materials and better building standards to improve climate resilience. Since then, urban planners have accelerated efforts to develop new, climate-conscious communities — especially in desert-adjacent areas — which the government sees as crucial buffers against climate change, according to the source.

The shift isn’t just about aesthetics: The Housing Ministry is revising its building codes to integrate low-cost green construction into the country’s expanding smart city strategy, a government official told EnterpriseAM. The move aims to reduce energy consumption and promote sustainability by mandating the use of recycled natural materials and higher-efficiency raw materials in new urban developments.

Meet Egypt’s new wave of green cities: Four cities — Hadayek Al Asimah, New Obour, New Aswan, and Hurghada — are leading the charge of integrating green building codes into their master plans. These cities are part of a broader push to relocate informal settlements and high-density areas into developments designed with climate-smart materials, architectural solutions tailored to local conditions, and enhanced green spaces. So far, over 25k housing units have been built with these sustainability principles, with more on the way.

Private developers are also catching on: It’s not just the government pushing for greener cities; the private sector is also stepping up, the Housing Ministry official told us. Real estate developers are expanding green spaces in their projects, boosting water efficiency, and implementing waste recycling systems to reduce environmental impact. This shift is driven by both regulatory changes and market demand as more homebuyers seek energy-efficient, sustainable housing.

Solar power is taking off: Egypt’s new urban communities are also seeing a surge in solar energy adoption, thanks to government incentives that have slashed the cost of solar panels. With low-voltage rooftop solar stations now encouraged for residential use, more homeowners are investing in clean energy solutions.

Sustainable materials = better cooling: Building materials are also a key part of the equation. Tarek El Sokkary, director of the Raw Building Materials and Technological Processing Research Institute, told EnterpriseAM that his team is working on low-emission construction materials that help regulate heat while reducing thermal emissions.

Clay bricks, for instance, are gaining traction as an alternative to traditional materials. The bricks’ thermal properties help keep buildings cooler by reflecting sunlight and retaining cool air, head of the Federation of Egyptian Industries’ Refractories and Bricks division Ali Singer told EnterpriseAM. He also pointed out that the Western Desert holds vast reserves of raw materials, which would help reduce reliance on imported construction inputs.

Egypt’s urban footprint is expanding: These initiatives are part of Egypt’s broader smart cities strategy, which aims to increase the country’s urbanized land from 7% in 2014 to 16% by 2030. That shift is giving private developers a bigger role in shaping sustainable urban growth, particularly as some national megaprojects slow down.

A helping hand: The Housing Ministry is set to unveil the results of a nationwide green housing design competition soon, with winning designs expected to be incorporated into upcoming residential projects, our source said.

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