(Photo Presidency Handout)
By Mariam Iskander
President Mohamed Morsi met with governmental and security officials on Tuesday at the Presidential Palace to discuss the security and development situation in Sinai.
According to state-run Al-Ahram, the meeting discussed plans of various development channels, ways to eliminate criminal groups, and the latest updates of plans to spread security across the region. President Morsi emphasised on the importance of translating these plans into actions in order to benefit residents throughout Sinai.
The meeting followed a two-day visit earlier this week by the head of the European Union delegation to Egypt, James Moran, who visited various EU-funded projects throughout South Sinai. The projects amount to €64m in investment from the EU.
Moran said in a statement that the visit “comes at a time when development of Sinai is widely debated”. He added: “There are doubtless many lessons to be learned for the future.” Rasha Serry, press officer for the EU delegation, said that Moran visited three developmental projects in Sinai on Wednesday. His tour began with a visit to the Solid Waste Management Facility in Sharm El-Sheikh, which has been ready to operate for two years now; however, it is still out of action due to financial challenges met by the Egyptian government.
“The Egyptian government will be able to overcome the challenges it is facing and start operating the project,” Moran said during his visit to the facility.
His second stop was at El-Tor, where he visited the Women Empowerment Centre, where he met with women who benefited from the centre’s activities.
Moran’s last visit was to the Centre for Economic and Social Rehabilitation for People with Special Needs. “The EU delegation was quite satisfied with the centre’s work,” Serry said, adding that “this is the only operating centre for supporting people with special needs in the region of South Sinai.”
