Informal Interview: January 25th, 2007
Araby from Dakhla
Samir from
Asyut
Personal history and land characteristics from Araby, general comments on community and agriculture by both.
- Araby’s father bought land, 6 feddans, in Bir Wahid 8 year’s ago for 6,000 EGP/feddan. Bought land from someone else who had received land from the government.
- He gets Uriya fertizler from Agricultural Bank, 5 bags for each feddan, 36 EGP/feddan. The Bank will provide only a certain amount per feddan, meaning the Bank most likely pre-orders for the total number of feddans in Abu Minqar.
- There is ig-gamya it-tanmaya, which has engineers. Mohamed Sadiq, from Kafeya, is a leader.
- Ig-gamya is responsible for water distribution, solving problems – neighbors can complain and get money from a neighbor who is stealing water. But, they added, despite having the role of conflict mediation, there are no real conflicts to mediate. Big conflicts would go to the police.
- They have maps and schedules.
- They don’t do anything about seeds or fertilizers.
- The irrigation engineers from the Ministry of Irrigation are part of the ig-gamya, so the government is involved.
- Office of Iz-Zaara, responsible for seeds, etc. which is a government office
- 36 private investors, 48 dakhla original settlers, settler’s pay 200-240 EGP to the government but don’t know which office.
- Villagers pay the government to cleans the canals
- In the summer, they don’t cultivate all 6 feddans, maybe only 2 and use all the water or give some to neighbor in exchange for water next time
- A house, when buying new land, is not part of the deal. Can negotiate or buy land on own.
- 1 hr/1 feddan, 3 feddans/3 hours of water
- Mohamed Said and Hassan Mohamed own most land in Bir Wahid…almost 70 feddans according to Araby and Samir
- Original Dakhla settlers have 6 feddans, private investors vary in feddanage.
- An elder is in charge of taking the schedule; Monsour, Abu Mahdi, or Adel’s father.
- Abu M is the Naggar who comes
- They say there is less rice because decrease. This is because of well water decrease and land increase. ***
- Can grow inside or outside il xarag il zamam in summer.
- Also they said that original settlers generally don’t sell land piecemeal, either leave or keep 6 feddans.
