Spatial Justice in the Greater Cairo Region
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Justice
What is poverty, equality and justice?
What is Poverty and Urban Poverty?
Poverty arises when incomes are below a certain level which experts deem the minimum amount necessary to fulfill the basic needs of daily life. This level is known as the “poverty line.� Urban Poverty arises among people below the poverty line within urban areas.
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What is the difference between Equality and Justice?
“Equality” suggests that each person receives the same resources as others, while “Justice” suggests each person receives the share of resources that corresponds to his/her needs. For example, in an “equal” tax system everyone pays the same percentage regardless of his/her income. In a “just” tax system people pay different percentages depending on their income, so the rich would pay a larger share than the poor. Planning [in] Justice
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What is Spatial Justice?
Spatial justice refers to the distribution of public resources among different geographic areas – such as governorates, cities, districts, neighborhoods, and villages – according to the varying needs of each area. For example, in a spatially just city, a higher share of subsidized public services would be invested in poorer districts rather than richer ones. Planning [in] Justice
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What is the status of spatial injustice in Egypt?
In Egypt, most studies focus on the national level and compare resource distribution and poverty levels between urban and rural areas. Research shows that urban areas receive a larger share of resources, while rural areas are typically poorer than urban areas. However, inequality within urban areas is higher than in rural areas. This necessitates examining inequality and injustice at the lowest spatial levels. Planning [in] Justice
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What are the causes and impacts of spatial injustice?
Centralization
In a centralized state, the national government is responsible for distributing public resources with no real participation from the local level. This, in many cases, leads to a misallocation of resources, and/or a distribution of resources in a way that does not respond to local needs, leading to spatial injustice. Planning [in] Justice
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Treating land as a commodity
Despite the abundance of land as a national resource in Egypt, state trends over the past few decades have regarded land as a commodity rather than a public resource that should be used in the public interest. The rising price of land in Egypt has made housing unaffordable to most people, which has caused much of the spatial injustice we witness today. Planning [in] Justice
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Unaffordable housing
When the state does not ensure that adequate housing is available to those with limited incomes, or when all subsidized housing is located in remote areas far from job opportunities and services, this results in the spread of informal areas. Informal areas are then labeled by the state as “haphazard” or “unplanned” areas, but in reality, this phenomenon reflects the process of people filling a gap that the state failed to address. Planning [in] Justice
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Misallocation of public resources
To ensure that development takes place in a just manner across different areas, public resources should be distributed according to each area’s needs and degree of deprivation. Without the proper tools to target deprived areas, spatial injustice is often exacerbated. Unfortunately, resources are often distributed based on political negotiations among government officials. Hence, deprived areas remain deprived, creating a vicious circle where spatial injustice leads to more injustice. Planning [in] Justice
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Absence of local elected entities
Elected local officials can be an effective channel for public participation and accountability in governance. Through elections, residents can voice their needs, hold local officials accountable, and motivate officials to pay attention to solving local problems. Without such channels, where the poor are voiceless and only privileged people can have their voices heard; richer parts of the city continue to obtain more resources. Planning [in] Justice
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Lack of transparency and access to public information
Important information about national and local statistics, public budgets, and government projects are inaccessible to most people. This makes it impossible for citizens to monitor development initiatives in their areas. Without transparency and access to public information, citizens cannot properly hold officials accountable for the misallocation or misuse of resources. Planning [in] Justice
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Lack of reliable indicators
Due to the lack of proper indicators that reflect spatial injustice, especially at the lowest spatial levels, many pockets of deprivation remain invisible to those in charge of public resource distribution. This makes it extremely difficult for officials to target such forms of deprivation, which results in a misallocation of resources, leading to continued, deeper deprivation and spatial injustice. Planning [in] Justice
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Administrative boundaries do not reflect development needs
Administrative subdivisions do not take into consideration the existing urban characteristics, socioeconomic networks, and development gaps. Some communities with homogenous developmental needs are scattered among different districts or governorates that have varying priorities and resources. Thus, the needs of such communities are addressed inconsistently or entirely fall between the cracks. Planning [in] Justice
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The creation of “Poverty Pockets”
When certain neighborhoods are deprived of public resources and services, life in these areas becomes less costly than in the rest of the city. These areas become attractive to people of limited means, creating a so-called “poverty-pocket.” Such areas continue to attract more poor people, creating a spatial concentration of the poor and a vicious circle where spatial injustice generates more injustice. Planning [in] Justice
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Redundancy of aid and development efforts in certain areas
The lack of effective tools to identify spatial injustice and levels of deprivation leads to the oversaturation of development efforts in some areas, leaving few resources for other areas with great needs.
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Planning [in] Justice The project aims to collect and analyze data and increase public awareness regarding the absence of spatial justice in the distribution of public resources between different urban areas. This is in addition to examining the institutional causes that enable this situation in Egypt, with a special focus on the Greater Cairo Region (GCR). In pursuing this aim, the project works on developing tools to identify, measure and address these inequalities and making these tools available to other active groups in Egypt. Planning [in] Justice is a project of TADAMUN: The Cairo Urban Solidarity Initiative.
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