CAIRO – Egypt’s Environment Minister Yassmin Fouad together with UAE Minister of State for Defense Affairs Mohammed Ahmed al Bowardi witnessed on Saturday the first release of houbara birds (chlamydotis) from el Ameed Natural Reserve in Marsa Matrouh governorate.
The move us part of a project to re-introduce houbara in Egypt.
Board Chairman of International Fund For Houbara Conservation (IFHC) Maged el Mansouri, Governor of Marsa Matrouh Khaled Shoeib and UAE Ambassador to Egypt Mariam Khalifa al Kaabi were also present in the release ceremony.
In a statement, the Ministry of Environment said the move comes within the framework of cooperation agreement between the ministry and the IFHC to conduct joint research and activities to conserve houbara and other main species in Egypt from extinction.
The houbara bustard is recognized by nature conservationists as an icon of the Arabian desert.
Fouad said today is a landmark in the history of Egyptian-UAE cooperation for biodiversity protection as 2,000 African chlamydotis were released in a bid to reintroduce them in Egypt.
She asserted that the Egyptian-UAE relations are deeply-rooted and strong in different domains, adding that the project of releasing 2,000 houbara birds is essential for maintaining biodiversity in the Middle East and North Africa.
She asserted the keenness of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on preserving environment and biodiversity and fighting climate change.
Fouad thanked the UAE and the workers in the project for their efforts in this project.
Meanwhile, Bowardi thanked Egypt for its strenuous efforts in the Arab world especially in the field of protecting the environment.
The launching comes within the framework of a cooperation protocol that aims at establishing projects that target sustainable management of animals and birds.
Discussion about this post