Prof. Ghada Farouk is the first woman to hold the position of Vice President of Ain Shams University

Leading several projects in the field of community service

A winner of the Regional Landscape Awards Middle East

Prof. Ghada Farouk, a distinguished alumna of Ain Shams University, achieved a significant milestone for the university when she assumed the position of Vice President for Community Service and Environmental Development, becoming the first woman to hold this position since the university's inception.

Dr. Ghada Farouk has an extensive and impressive record of accomplishments throughout her academic and professional journey. She is the Chair of the Department of Design and Urban Planning at the Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University. She has numerous works and academic qualifications to her name, in addition to receiving several awards.

Career Progression

Dr. Ghada Farouk earned her Bachelor’s degree in Architecture in 1989 with first-class honors from the Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University. She obtained her Master's degree in Urban Design in 1994, followed by a research mission in 1999 to collect scientific material for her doctoral studies at the University of California, Berkeley, USA. In 2000, she earned a Ph.D. in Urban Planning with a focus on environmental control and planning.

Dr. Farouk has held numerous positions throughout her career, ultimately serving as the Vice President for Community Service and Environmental Development in February 2023.

Her academic journey began as a teaching assistant in the Urban Planning Department at the Faculty of Engineering, then she became a lecturer in the same department, eventually rising to the position of Head of the Department of Design and Urban Planning from 2018 to 2023.

She has held several key positions, including serving as the Chair and member of the permanent committee for promotions to the ranks of Professor and Associate Professor in the fields of Architecture and Planning, affiliated with the Supreme Council of Universities. She also directed the Housing and Urban Development Architecture Program for universities, was Chair of the Department of Architecture at the French University in Egypt, and was appointed Director of the Technical Office at the General Authority for Urban Planning, Ministry of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Development.

Dr. Ghada Farouk has led several community service projects, including preparing visual identity guides and architectural character for neighborhoods and regions in collaboration with the Urban Coordination Authority.

Community Engagement

Dr. Ghada Farouk led applied research on identifying needs in existing cities using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and demographic data to comprehensively identify underprivileged areas in the city of Minya. She also worked on adopting an innovative approach to address unplanned areas at the national level, managed by the Slum Development Fund.

Dr. Ghada participated in preparing the strategic future vision for Cairo 2050, managed by the General Authority for Urban Planning, where she was responsible for urban studies, analysis, and coordination with other disciplines. She also participated in urban surveys and the development of a database for the main urban cluster in Cairo. Additionally, she contributed to preparing the Strategic Urban Development Plan (SUP) for 50 cities, managed by UN-Habitat, where she served as the team leader and urban planner. She was also involved in implementing the "Regional Urban Sector Profiles Study" (RUSPS), a practical research project sponsored by the UN-Habitat Program, in the cities of Suez and Alexandria.

Currently, Dr. Ghada Farouk works as a consultant for participatory planning at the General Authority for Urban Planning, where she focuses on documenting and evaluating the participatory process used in the Cairo Future Vision Project, and leads the team responsible for the participatory planning component of the third phase of the project.

She led the pilot project for slum development through participation (Matarieh District), initiated by the General Authority for Urban Planning. Dr. Ghada also participated in surveying and classifying unsafe areas in Egypt as a consultant at the Slum Development Fund (ISDF), in addition to contributing to the development of strategies for dealing with slum areas in Egypt, achieved by the General Authority for Urban Planning.

She was also involved in the urban development of the Abu Hashish area in Cairo Governorate and the Azbet El-Maamoun area in Fayoum Governorate. In the field of urban design, Dr. Ghada left her mark as an urban designer and landscape coordinator in several projects, including the Half Moon Beach Development Project and the KAND Project in Saudi Arabia.

Awards

Dr. Ghada Farouk has numerous publications related to inner-city renewal, participation, and urban planning. She has received several awards in the fields of architecture and planning, including the Design Award for Public Squares in the New Administrative Capital and the honor of representing Egypt at the 2023 Venice Biennale. In 2024, Dr. Ghada Farouk received the Regional Award for Landscape Coordination in the Middle East, sponsored by IFLA (International Federation of Landscape Architects), for academic excellence in urban planning and landscape coordination.