Ibrahim Isaac Sidrak must be smiling. At the end of August 2022, the Patriarch of Coptic Catholics had confirmation that the future establishment for the care of children should soon arise out of the sands.
It was Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al Sisi himself who decided on the allocation of the land on which the new health structure will be built.
The land, given in concession, is located within the perimeter of the greater urban area of Cairo, where the Egyptian “New Administrative Capital” will be built, which is intended to accommodate nearly 5 million inhabitants initially, then 7 million when the undertaking is complete.
The signing of the contracts that should allow the concrete start of construction is expected in the coming days, as Fides has learned.
Representatives of the company leading the urban development plans of the administrative capital met with the project promoters on August 21, 2022. On this occasion, the land subject to the government concession was registered and an inspection also took place in the zone where the future children’s hospital is to be built.
The Bambino Gesu Association of Cairo operates on site in collaboration with the Human Fraternity Foundation, an organization committed to supporting social projects and social assistance to support the poorest groups of the population.
At the meeting on August 21, several members of the Foundation were present, as well as Msgr. Yoannis Lahzi Gaid, former secretary to Pope Francis, Hala Mustafa Zayed, former Egyptian Minister of Health, and Pietro Luigi Ronaldo Donato, President of the Bambino Gesu Association of Cairo.
The participants thanked the Egyptian Head of State who, according to them, “expressed his interest in a concrete way” for the charitable objectives and strong social impact carried by Cairo-based Bambino Gesu.
The Coptic Catholic Patriarch Ibrahim Isaac Sidrak also expressed his gratitude to President al Sisi for providing the necessary land for this important project promoted for the benefit of sick children.
In terms of health, the new establishment will benefit from the unequaled resources of its Roman big brother, with whom it will remain in close collaboration.
Thanks to this link, and with the contribution of Italian and Egyptian doctors and engineers, the new hospital will be able to provide mothers and children with levels of health care that meet the most modern scientific standards. The medical and nursing staff will finally have state-of-the-art health devices.
The Egyptian head of state has just given the green light to the construction of a new pediatric establishment, directly sponsored by the Bambino Gesu in Rome. The management of the new children’s hospital will be entrusted to the Coptic Catholic Patriarchate.