Egyptian Irrigation Minister Mohamed Abdel Aati has stressed that Egypt is seeking to achieve water security through projects to reduce water waste and upgrade irrigation systems.
The government is also acting to develop new water resources, such as desalination, said Abdel Aati during the first session of Cairo Water Week (CWW), which kicked off here earlier Sunday. Such efforts are important to achieve water security, he noted.
In 2016, Egypt decided to implement desalination projects in a bid to diversify water resources, the minister told the gathering, pointing out that the country is in need of some five to seven billion cubic meters of water to cope with overpopulation in the future.
He talked about new legislation to manage water resources and irrigation, which had already been approved by the House of Representatives and endorsed by the president.
Indeed, smart irrigation and advanced management of water resources are key to improving water, Abdel Aati acknowledged.
He cited some crops that highly consume water, noting that his Ministry has moved to limit cultivation of such agricultural crops.
He added that the Ministry is seeking to secure all financial allocations needed to improve management of water resources. This is done through projects to line waterways and transform to advanced irrigation methods, the minister told the session.
The fourth edition of CWW opened today and will last until October 24 under the auspices of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. It will focus on policy dialogues of water-scarce countries.
