Egyptian government plans to invest about 50 billion dollars over 20 years to secure access to drinking water for its 97 million population.
The announcement was made by the Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Mohamed Abdel Aty on the sidelines of the Beirut Water Week in Lebanon, which opened its doors on Monday, April 8, 2019.
The project is part of the National Water Plan 2017-2037 in the drinking water sector.
The government intends to strengthen its cooperation with African countries that share the Nile Basin, he said.
This announcement comes after severe tensions in recent months over the construction of Ethiopia’s renaissance dam over the Nile.
Egypt, which relies on the Nile for about 90% of its freshwater needs, argues that tampering with the river’s flow would put millions of farmers out of work and threaten the country’s food supply.
In Ethiopia, engineers estimate that the GERD will produce about 6,450 megawatts of electricity, a hydropower jackpot that would boost the country’s aspirations to attain middle-income status by 2025.
A part of the $50 investment in the water sector, Egypt is also investing in desalination, particularly for its ongoing real estate projects in Upper Egypt.
The Government plans to build a $75 million seawater desalination plant in the future city of New Mansoura.
