Irrigation min. inaugurates flood control projects in South Sinai

CAIRO – 8 June 2018: Within the framework of the governmental plan to protect the country from flood risks, Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources Mohamed Abdel Ati inaugurated on Sunday a number of flood control projects in South Sinai.

These projects were implemented as part of a protection protocol signed with the National Service Projects Organization, represented by the National General Contracting and Supplies Company in Nuweiba, Dahab and St. Catherine cities.

The projects include a barrier in Nuweiba city with a length of 215 meters and a cost of about LE 2 million. This barrier targets to protect vital facilities in El-Mazina, El-Mena and the Dahab-Nuweiba road.

Abdel Ati also inaugurated a dam in St. Catherine with a storage capacity of 100,000 cubic meters at a cost of around LE 5.4 million, aiming to protect the surrounding area from the dangers of floods.

Additionally, a man-made lake with a storage capacity of 500,000 cubic meters and a cost of LE 12.3 million was inaugurated to protect facilities and communities in St. Catherine city. "The projects aim to provide flood protection for 16 sites," said the minister.

Egypt has put forward a plan to develop Sinai, which started in 2014 and will continue until 2022, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi said in February. He said that the cost of Sinai development will reach LE 275 billion.

In March, Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr signed five agreements with Kuwait Fund for Development General Director Abdel Wahab al-Badr, with a total value of KWD 86.1 million ($287 million/LE 5 billion) to finance Sinai development.

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group has also allocated $3 billion over three years for its new cooperation strategy with Egypt (2018-2020), which will support a number of development projects in Egypt.

Four Arab finance funds have also supported Egypt’s plans for developing Sinai, providing the needed financing for the projects in the peninsula.
On Sinai Liberation Day on April 25, Sisi inaugurated five developmental and infrastructural projects in Sinai.

These projects are: Rumaila 3 desalination plant; two sewage stations, one in Hamam city and the other in Dabaa city; East Matrouh electricity transformer station and a water lifter in the new city of Dabaa.

Rumaila 3 project is a desalination plant with a productive capacity of 12,000 cubic meters per day that will come into force besides Rumaila 1 and 2 plants that produce 24,000 cubic meters per day each. The productive capacity of the three plants will reach 60,000 cubic meters per day.

The sewage station in Hamam city will produce 15,000 meters per day, while the sewage station in Dabaa city comes with a capacity of 14,000 cubic meters per day.

Moreover, the electricity station, East Matrouh, is located in Kilo 29 on the Matrouh-Alexandria Road, with a capacity of 25 mega volt ampere (MVA). The total cost of the station is LE 75 million. It will be an alternative source of electricity for the al-Alban station that is currently feeding the city.