An agreement has recently been signed between Switzerland and Egypt. It concerns a $17 million grant from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (DDS) for a drinking water programme in the Aswan Governorate in Upper Egypt.
Good news for the Drinking Water Programme in Upper Egypt! The Ambassador of the Swiss Republic to Egypt, Paul Garnier, recently signed an agreement with Assem al-Gazzar, the Egyptian Minister of Housing, Public Services and Urban Communities. The agreement concerns a $17 million grant from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (DDS), the Swiss Confederation’s international cooperation agency.
The funds allocated in the form of grants are intended for the Aswan Governorate in Upper Egypt, justifying the presence of Governor Ahmed Ibrahim at the signing of the financing agreement. The funds will be used for technical assistance, investment, capacity building for the local utility company Aswan Water Company (ASWC) and raising awareness about water management in this desert region.
The Drinking Water Management Programme in Upper Egypt
“Switzerland’s investment in drinking water management underlines its commitment to improving access to basic infrastructure services for Egyptian citizens. I am confident that the programme will lead to more sustainable and equitable access to safe drinking water in Upper Egypt and that it will ultimately foster an environment more conducive to economic development, income generation and entrepreneurial opportunities in this region,” said Paul Garnier, Swiss Ambassador to Egypt.
In the governorate of Aswan, the drinking water management programme in Upper Egypt will be carried out in two phases until 2027. As a first step, between 2019 and 2021, ASWC will rehabilitate and expand its drinking water distribution network in the Kattereya, Amberkab, Khor Awda and El-Nasseriya regions. The second phase will be devoted to the replication and improvement of phase one based on the results obtained. The Swiss ambassador to Egypt estimates that the funding provided by his country in the programme should make it possible to provide drinking water to 2 million people.
A similar project will be completed by December in Upper Egypt. It is a project to improve water and sanitation services, one of the objectives of which is precisely to improve the quantity and quality of water and sanitation services in the Kena, Sohag, Assiout and Minya governorates in Upper Egypt, through a sectoral investment programme focused on the most urgent needs. It has received financial support of 57 million euros from the French Development Agency (AFD).
Jean Marie Takouleu
