Egypt is seeking to achieve optimal use of water resources through its national irrigation projects, announced Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Mohamed Abdel-Aty.
He said that the current water projects are meant to realize the optimal use of water resources and improve the economic and social conditions of farmers.
Egypt suffers from a scarcity of freshwater resources. According to official statements, it has entered the stage of water poverty, with the per capita share at less than 1,000 cubic meters annually.
The Nile water accounts for more than 90 percent of Egypt’s needs, or 55.5 billion cubic meters.
Cairo is is anticipating a water shortage as Ethiopia operates the Grand Renaissance Dam (GERD) on the Nile River.
During a meeting with his aides, Abdel-Aty issued directions to proceed with the national project to rehabilitate canals.
He also called for continuing control and supervision through the ministry’s engineers, inspection committees, and scientific personnel from Egyptian universities.
The minister said the canal rehabilitation project improved the management and distribution of water with farmers receiving their share of water on time.
The ministry wants to rehabilitate up to 2,297 km of the canals across the country, and work is underway on another 6,194 km.
Financial allocations have been made to rehabilitate canals with lengths of up to 424 km in preparation for offering them to contractors, bringing the total covered by the project to 8,915 km so far.
Egypt has embarked on implementing a strategy to manage and meet water demand until 2037, with investments nearing $50 million.
The program includes building seawater desalination plants and wastewater recycling plants with triple treatment.
