Egypt’s transport ministry has officially announced the opening of three subway stations for pilot operation on June 15, as part of the fourth phase of Cairo Metro’s Line III expansion project, coming shortly before the country hosts the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON), Invest-Gate reports.

Haroun El Rashid, Alf Maskan, and El Shams Club stations – all located in Heliopolis, east Cairo – are aimed at facilitating the transportation of AFCON fans attending matches namely at Cairo International Stadium and El Salam Stadium, according to a ministerial statement on June 8.

Construction on the Heliopolis metro station, which is one of the biggest stations in Africa and the MENA region, will be concluded next October, with the first and second stages of Line III’s fourth phase set to be completed in April 2020, the ministry highlighted.

“The full Haroun El Rashid-El Shams Club extension covers a distance of 5.15 kilometers and stops at four tunnel stations and one elevated station at El Nozha. Work on this phase of the project began in July 2015 and the final cost of construction was EUR 257 mn (EGP 4.87 bn), plus EGP 1.5 bn,” read the statement.

The fourth phase of Line III covers a distance of 48 kilometers, making it the longest metro line in Egypt. It comprises ten stations, with a total length of 15.8 kilometers, endeavoring to serve 3 mn commuters per day.

This year’s AFCON will take place from June 21 until July 19, with the participation of 24 teams, in six groups, for the first time in the history of the African competition. Egypt previously hosted the Nations Cup in 1959, 1974, 1986, and 2006, and claimed a total of seven victories since the tournment’s inception in 1957.