Physical Transformation of Rural Villages Encompassed into Egyptian City Borders

Abstract

The sprawl of Egyptian cities has lead to the encompassing of adjacent peripheral villages into their urbanized areas. These encompassed villages have been undergoing uncontrolled physical transformations, causing them to lose their original identities but rarely gain full urban ones. This study aims to clarify the physical transformations occurring in such areas, while highlighting anticipated problems in continued uncontrolled transformations, for the purpose of further study on control strategies. A field survey was conducted in the El-Ekhsas neighborhood of El-Minya City, Egypt. Specifically, the study clarified physical transformations by investigating: 1) the changing urban fabric from an organic to more grid-like, and eventually to a random linear structure, 2) the decrease in plot areas due to inheritance practices and a linear subdivision system for agricultural land, and 3) changing trends in building heights and construction materials. The main existing physical problems are then summarized as: 1) inadequacy of street networks concerning vehicle access, 2) incompatibility of decreasing plot areas to the application of planning laws, and 3) lack of maintenance concerning streets, buildings, and infrastructure. Finally, the study suggests the formation of a partnership between villagers and the city government to establish special local bylaws and improvement projects applicable to encompassed villages.