Capital Cities Development Strategies between Sustainability and Competitiveness Case of the Egyptian capital

Abstract

This research develops an assessment of the Egyptian Capital city by integrating a theoretical approach and a phronetic approach. The research identifies the concepts of sustainability and competitiveness, their indicators and the importance of their integration in development strategies. The research then analyzes a set of international examples of capital cities to identify the tools of their development strategies. The capital cities development strategies are typologically categorized as capital city reinvention and capital city relocation. The tools derived from the phronetic assessment of the examined capital cities are linked to the theoretically studied concepts of sustainability and competitiveness. The tools of capital cities development strategies are then applied to the Egyptian Capital. The case of the Egyptian Capital is studied as both the existing Greater Cairo Region and the New Administrative Capital city that is still under construction. The research shows that the New Administrative Capital city should be studied and managed as an integral part of the Greater Cairo agglomeration and not as a separate city. The research concludes that, in the best case scenario, the New Administrative Capital city can enhance both the sustainability and competitiveness of the Greater Cairo Region.