Egypt implements hundreds of projects to protect Sinai from flash floods

CAIRO – 30 October 2023: In 2014, the Egyptian government launched a series of projects aimed at protecting Sinai from flash floods by constructing 1,500 flood barriers, and 117 flood control channels extending on a total of 311 kilometers.

The plan, implemented by the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources, also consists of digging 15 artificial lakes, and building nine rainwater harvesting dams having a total capacity of 6.6 million cubic meters. It is noted that the projects implemented to protect Sharm El Sheikh alone have cost LE1.5 billion.

In a related context, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation Al Sayed al-Qusair stated in September that roads, power plants, agricultural wastewater recycling plants, water supply networks, and pumping stations were being introduced to reclaim and cultivate 500,000 feddans (one feddan equals 4,500 square meters) in Sinai.

The minister made the statement during a ceremony held to deliver leasing contracts to farmers on the peninsula, noting that LE750 billion had been spent on development projects in Sinai, including those pertaining to health, education, and social protection.