Egypt and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) have signed, today, a- EUR 186-mn- project aimed at upgrading sewage water system in Fayyoum governorate, west of Cairo… Nayrouz Talaat reports for Invest-Gate.

“The EBRD project will supply over one million households with water and help create 3,000 job opportunities,” EBRD Managing Director of the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Janet Heckman tells Invest-Gate.

“Moreover, we are seeking to pump EUR 1 bn in Egypt to boost a number of other projects during the upcoming period,” Heckman adds.

In his statement, Minister of Housing Mostafa Madbouly said, “As of this year, this project will start by cleaning the polluted waters of Qarun Lake- Egypt’s third biggest lake- due to uncontrolled solid and liquid domestic and industrial waste disposal practices.”

Lake Qarun  is located in Fayyoum on the fringe of the Western Desert about 90 km south of Cairo. Fayyoum, located not too far from the Nile Valley, is one of Egypt’s most treasured natural landmarks and resources.

“Cleaning contaminated lake waters tops our priorities and therefore we will begin with Lake Qarun then Lake Manzala and Lake Brolous,” Madbouly tells Invest-Gate.

The project is to further include the establishment of eight stations for the processing of sewage water, the expansion of nine stations for processing sewage water, as well as, the expansion of 3,000km of sewage pumps, the purchase of 350 unloading trucks, and the building of 350 new water pumping stations.

Minister of Housing Mostafa Madbouly and Minister of Investment and International Co-operation (MIIC) Sahar Nasr along with EBRD managing director Janet Heckman have inked the agreement today at the MIIC premises.

According to Minister of Investment and International Co-operation (MIIC) Sahar Nasr, the project will boost tourist sites, as well as, improve the environmental conditions of the area. 

The total water supply in Fayyoum is 66 bn cubic meters while the total current water requirement for different sectors is 79.5 bn cubic meters per year (bcm/yr). The gap between the needs and availability of water is about 13.5 bcm/yr. This gap is compensated by the recycling of drainage water either officially or unofficially.

In a related development, the EBRD is seeking to fund many other infrastructure projects, including sea desalination, according to Madbouly. 

The EBRD invested EUR 1.6 bn in Egypt, willing to support projects in transportation, environment, small- and medium-sized enterprises, and women in entrepreneurship projects.