Egyptian business tycoon Samih Sawiris donated 100 million EGP ($13.1 million) to the Zewail City for Science and Technology, Egypt Nobel Laureate Ahmed Zewail announced in a news conference at the headquarters of the city in 6th of October City Monday.
“We have to work hard to upgrade the society and the Sawiris Institution cooperated with Berlin University from which I graduated…Zewail City should be given a helping hand as it will be the biggest and most important facility in the coming period,” said Sawiris during the conference.
Zewail City is a non-profit scientific institute and was proposed in 1999, but a Cabinet decree on May 11, 2011 labeled the project a “National Project of Scientific Renaissance” and called it Zewail City of Science and Technology. In addition, a presidential decree allows students to enroll in the city’s university. The city selects between 4-5 percent of applicants.
The city is the first scientific facility in Egypt and is being constructed on a 250,000 meter square in cooperation with four construction companies, said Zewail City spokesperson Sherif Fouad in the conference.
The first phase of the construction includes facility for medical science, a nano-technology building, an administrative and culture center, and a dormitory, Fouad added, noting that the second phase includes building research centers in many fields and an exhibition center, Youm7 reported.
Fouad told The Cairo Post in April 2014 that city needs funds amounting to approximately $2 billion and will rely on donations offered by the government and the people. In Sept. 2014, Zewail announced that the Armed Forces participate in such a project.
