http://www.thecairopost.com/news/156526/topnews/development-initiative-at-islamic-cairo-districts-kicks-off-june-21

http://www.thecairopost.com/news/156526/topnews/development-initiative-at-islamic-cairo-districts-kicks-off-june-21

Development initiative at Islamic Cairo districts kicks off June 21

Jun. 21, 2015 13:00

Photo courtesy of UNESCO

By Rany Mostafa

CAIRO: An initiative that aims to develop Cairo’s districts of Islamic heritage will be launched June 27, Cairo Governor Galal Saeed told the state TV.
“The development initiative will start with the most densely populated districts including al-Gamaleya, al-Hussein, al-Megharbeleen, al-Darb al-Ahmar and al-Sayeda Nafisa,” Saeed said.
The initiative, scheduled to be concluded by the end of Ramadan, is under the auspices of Cairo governorate and the Interior Ministry, Saeed said, adding that the initiative will remove all encroachments and street vendors around historic buildings in the said areas.
It also aims to restore the old mosques, madrasas (old Islamic schools), sabils (donated drinking water fountains for public use), hammams ) traditional public bathroom) and fountains,  as well as to develop the area’s infrastructure by paving streets and sidewalks as well as maintaining street lights, Youm7 quoted Saeed.

Photo courtesy of UNESCO

Encroachment and misuse by residents and vendors have caused harm and environmental pollution to the Islamic monuments found along Al-Muizz Street and its neighboring alleyways.
In 2001, Egypt launched the Historic Cairo Rehabilitation Project (HCRP), which aimed to protect and restore and develop the historical Al-Muizz Street into an open-air museum.
On Tuesday, Antiquities Ministry created a new department aiming at raising awareness among school students of the importance of Islamic sites located in residential areas.
“The move aims to curb violations committed on daily basis outside historical mosques located along Al-Muizz Street and al-Darb al-Ahmar district. The new department started to dispatch fresh graduate Egyptian archaeologists to primary and preparatory schools in Cairo to raise the cultural awareness of the students,” head of the Coptic and Islamic Monuments Department at the Antiquities Ministry Mohamed Abdel Latif told The Cairo Post Tuesday.
Stretching from the Citadel of Saladin in the south to the northern city walls, Islamic Cairo is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site since 1979 and houses Egypt’s most renowned Islamic monuments.