The National Solid Waste Management Programme (NSWMP) continues in Egypt. On 28 August 2022, Egyptian Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad inaugurated two solid waste transit stations in Al-Gharbiya Governorate. The new facilities serve the centres of Zafti and Samannoud.
The Zafti station covers an area of 10,660 m2, with a capacity of 500 tonnes of waste per day. The Samannoud station, built on a 9,660 m2 site, is capable of receiving 300 tonnes of waste per day.
Reducing pollution by 50% by 2030 in Egypt
According to the Egyptian Ministry of the Environment, the solid waste stored at the new intermediate sites will later be transferred to recycling units in the Al Gharbiya governorate. Rubbish from the surrounding villages will also be taken care of. The aim is to reduce pollution. The Egyptian government expects pollution to fall by around 50% by 2030, also through the gradual adoption of the circular economy. Egypt produces an average of 95 million tonnes of waste per year.
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The construction of the Zafti and Samannoud transit stations required an investment of 31 million Egyptian pounds, more than $1.6 million. The State of Egypt financed the work under the NSWMP. The project is funded to the tune of $85 million with support from the German development agency Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), the European Commission and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs. The NSWMP is also being implemented in the governorates of Kafr El Sheikh and Qena, where solid waste management systems will be built or rehabilitated.
Inès Magoum