Ismailia Governorate

Ismailia is one of the Canal Zone governorates of Egypt. Located in the northeastern part of the country, its capital is the city of Ismailia. It was named after Ismail Pasha, who as Ottoman Viceroy of Egypt, oversaw the country during the building of the Suez Canal. It is located between the other two Canal governorates; Port Said Governorate, in the Northern part of Egypt and Suez Governorate.

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Municipal divisions

The governorate is divided into municipal divisions, with a total estimated population as of January 2023 of 1,479,511. In the case of Ismailia governorate, there are 4 kism, 5 markaz and 1 new city.
The divisions are generally seven: Ismailia which is the capital, Tell El Kebir, Abu Suwir, Qassasin, Fayid, Qantara West and Qantara East.

Anglicized name	Native name	Arabic transliteration	Population	Type
Abu Suwir	مركز أبو صوير		221,994	Markaz
Ismailia	مركز الاسماعيلية		170,065	Markaz
Ismailia 1	قسم أول الاسماعيلية		49,859	Kism
Ismailia 2	قسم ثان الاسماعيلية		264,376	Kism
Ismailia 3	قسم ثالث الاسماعيلية		131,422	Kism
El Qantara West	مركز القنطرة غرب		162,101	Markaz
El Qantara El Sharqiya	مركز القنطرة شرق		62,600	Markaz
New Kasaseen	مركز القصاصين الجديده		120,788	New City
Tell El Kebir	مركز التل الكبير		111,635	Markaz
Fayid	مركز فايد		147,562	Markaz

Population

According to population estimates, in 2015 the majority of residents in the governorate lived in rural areas, with an urbanization rate of only 45.4%. Out of an estimated 1,479,511 people residing in the governorate, 807,813 people lived in rural areas as opposed to only 671,678 in urban areas.

Cities and towns

As of 2017, seven cities in Ismailia had a population of over 15,000 inhabitants.

Anglicized name	Native name	Arabic transliteration	Nov. 1996 Census	Nov. 2006 Census	Population
Abu Suwir El Mahata	أبو صوير المحطة		18,331	24,265	29,476
Ismalia	الإسماعيلية		255,134	293,184	386,372
New Kasaseen	القصاصين الجديدة		11,948	15,611	22,000
Tell El Kebir	التل الكبير		31,410	26,891	37,000
Fayid	فايد		15,652	21,808	31,545

Industrial zones

According to the Governing Authority for Investment and Free Zones, the following industrial zones are located in Isamilia:

Zone name

Abo Khalifa Industrial Zone

East Qantra Industrial Zone

First and Second Industrial Zone

Technology Valley Industrial Zone

Annual film festival

Hashim El Nahas founded the Ismailia International Film Festival for Documentaries and Shorts and originally considered establishing it in Luxor. Instead this festival has been celebrating its annual events in Ismailia Governorate. It is sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Ismailia Governorate, The National Cinema Center and other sponsors.

Ismailia Canal

The Ismailia Governorate is on the banks of the Suez Canal and its Ismailia Canal extends from the Nile River near Cairo to the Suez Canal at the city of Ismailia, on Lake Timsah. The Ismailia Canal was built to provide fresh water to workers during the building of the Suez Canal. The Suez Canal Authority headquarters is located in Ismailia.

Conflicts and wars

From 1967 to 1970, Ismailia became a war zone and was damaged in the conflict with Israel. Many battles were fought, in and around Ismailia, including at the end of the conflict in the Battle of Ismailia and the area was able to begin rebuilding after a cease-fire was negotiated between Egypt and Israel in 1973.

Fishing landing sites

There are several official fishing landing sites in Ismailia. One is at Lake Timsah and the other at Bitter Lake.

UN sustainable programme

After a successful SIP from 1992 to 1997, the United Nations expanded the project to include the entire Governorate of Ismailia calling it SGIP. Its goal is to work with local partners to improve the communities in Ismailia.