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Film on Aga Khan work in Cairo debuts on World Environment Day

In 2005, the landscape of Cairo, Egypt’s biggest city changed for the good. Through the Aga Khan Trust for Culture AKTC), a new 30-hectare (74-acre) Al-Azhar park, undertaken in the historic district of Cairo was unveiled.

The site had become a large rubbish dump, which the AKTC began to gradually remove and clean in collaboration with the Egyptian Government and local community.

The leisure and recreational space created a “green lung” in the heart of the densely populated city. The project included the excavation and extensive restoration of the 12th Century Ayyubid wall and the rehabilitation of important monuments and landmark buildings in the Historic City. It also encompassed an extensive social development programme, including apprenticeship arrangements, housing rehabilitation, micro-credit and health care facilities.

Fifteen years later, the work of this park is getting another highlight with the release of a film, entitled Al-Khimyah, written and directed by Prince …