Majid Al Futtaim, the leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, officially opened the doors of its eagerly-anticipated Mall of Egypt last March 2. With an investment of AED 2.6 billion, the mall, located on Wahat Road in 6th of October City, is expected to attract large crowds eager to be the first to experience Egypt's premier shopping and entertainment hub. Mall of Egypt is Majid Al Futtaim's flagship project in North Africa and a pillar of the company's AED5.1 billion investment strategy in Egypt. With the unveiling of the country's first super-regional mall, Majid Al Futtaim is bringing its world-renowned leisure and entertainment brand portfolio that includes Ski Egypt, which brings snow for the first time to the city and the African continent; and VOX Cinemas, with a total of 21 theatres housing one 4DX screen, four Gold screens, one MAX screen, two screens for kids and 13 regular screens with a total of 2,473 seats. Customers will also enjoy the latest version of the family entertainment center, Magic Planet, and Little Explorers. With a gross leasable area (GLA) of 165,000 square meters, Mall of Egypt houses 350 best local and international retailers including an unmatched high-end fashion offering of the world's most prestigious brands. Mall of Egypt features the finest dining outlets. Moreover, the mall houses major department stores as well as other fashion, lifestyle, sports, electronics, home furnishing outlets. With direct access to Wahat Road, the mall includes 6,500 car parking spaces. Mall of Egypt boasts remarkable offerings that make it Cairo's go-to destination for unmatched experiences. Ghaith Shocair, Chief Executive Officer – Shopping Malls, Majid Al Futtaim Properties, said "Majid Al Futtaim has a long standing presence in Egypt, which started 15 years ago with the introduction of Carrefour, City Centre Maadi and City Centre Alexandria. In-line with our vision of creating great moments for everyone everyday, today we are proud to open the doors of Mall of Egypt, bringing snow to the city through Ski Egypt as well as featuring an array of exclusive international brands and innovative leisure and entertainment concepts of VOX Cinemas, Magic Planet and Little Explorer introduced for the first time in the Egyptian market. Mall of Egypt, Majid Al Futtaim's second "Mall of" flagship shopping mall, will set the same precedent as its sister brand, Mall of the Emirates in the UAE bringing unmatched experiences to North Africa. Egypt is an important market for Majid Al Futtaim and launching mega projects like Mall of Egypt re-affirms our strong belief in the vast opportunities available in the Egyptian market." Since the launch of Mall of the Emirates eleven years ago, Majid Al Futtaim has been a leader in the creation of superior retail, leisure and entertainment destinations across the region, launching successful "Mall of" concepts such as the upcoming Mall of Saudi and Mall of Oman. Mall of Egypt is expected to create more than 41,000 direct and indirect job opportunities since commencement of its construction. As part of the company's commitment to community and infrastructure development, Majid Al Futtaim invested more than AED70 million to develop the surrounding road network over an area of approximately 10 km, to provide safe entrances and exits to mall visitor and alleviate the traffic in the neighborhood. Mall of Egypt's unique retail mix is not the only aspect that makes it stand out in the market. The mall's environmentally-friendly design and innovative architectural concepts is an excellent example of Majid Al Futtaim's leading sustainability model and the good progress the company is making towards fulfilling its objective of setting and meeting international best practice standards. Mall of Egypt is working closely with the relevant local partners to develop, implement and maintain its sustainability strategy, which includes developing environmental data management system in order to effectively measure, monitor and enhance the efficiency achieved in managing energy, water and waste. — SG