‘Egypt is one of the most water-stressed countries in the world’

CAIRO – Egypt’s Water Resources and Irrigation Minister Hani Sweilam said that Egypt is one of the most water-stressed countries in the world, the Water Resources Ministry said in a statement on Friday.

Egypt is one of the most water-scarce countries in the world as it needs 114 billion cubic meters of water annually.

The Egyptian State is exerting great efforts based on scientific rules and guidelines to face water challenges resulting from limited water resources and the negative impact of climate change, the minister said.

The State is implementing many major projects in the field of agricultural drainage water reuse with the view to carrying out agricultural extension project to achieve food security and confront desertification, including Bahr el-Baqar, El Hamam and El Mahsama projects.

El-Salam station, including seven units, has been constructed, at a capacity of 11 m3/per sec., the minister added.

Egypt’s Bahr el Baqar wastewater treatment plant obtained three certificates from Guinness World Records.

As per Guinness World Records, the largest water treatment plant is Bahr El-Baqar Treatment Plant with a capacity of 64.8 m³/per sec. achieved by Orascom Construction and The Arab Contractors (Osman Ahmed Osman & Co), in Sinai Peninsula, on June 23, 2021.

Bahr el-Baqar Water Treatment Plant, which produces 2,044,000,000 m³ per year, introduces a sustainable solution for environmental pollution recovery and irrigation water source (via recycling the water of Bahr El-Baqar drain); whereas it protects the environment and generates the water to support the cultivation of 400,000 feddans in Sinai. Bahr El-Baqar treatment plant has a total footprint of 650,000 square meters.