Egypt’s Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Mohamed Abdel Aaty, has held a meeting with section heads at his ministry, to review ongoing cooperation between Egypt and African countries.
During the meeting, Abdel Aaty said that the bilateral cooperation is one of the main axes on Egyptian foreign policy is founded. This is in light of the human capabilities and various technical and institutional expertise that Egypt possesses in the field of water resources.
In the course of this cooperation, many projects with developmental benefits that directly benefit the citizens of African countries have been implemented, the minister said.
He added that the projects have been implemented in a way that contributes to achieving sustainable development, and raising the standard of living for citizens.
“Cooperation between Egypt and Africa in the field of water resources is considered a model of successful cooperation,” Abdel Aaty said.
Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation has, over the years, constructed many rainwater harvesting dams and underground drinking water stations across Africa. These projects aimed to provide clean drinking water for residents in remote areas who are also far from bodies of water.
Solar energy technology was used in a large number of ground wells to allow their sustainable operation.
Moreover, Abdel Aaty also mentioned his ministry’s contribution in preparing the necessary studies for projects to construct multi-purpose dams providing electricity and drinking water to Africa.
Egypt’s efforts included preparing the technical and economic feasibility studies for the multi-purpose Wau Dam in South Sudan. The Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation has also sent its representatives, as part of expert delegations, to assess studies and construction of the Fomi Multi-purpose Dam and the Cogpedo Hydroelectric Complex in the Guinean capital, Conakry.
Egypt has also technically supported the establishing of a hydraulic research laboratory in Ethiopia. This is alongside a central laboratory for analysing water quality in South Sudan, and a flood forecasting centre in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Additionally, the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation has organised many training courses for professionals from across Africa.
