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EGYPT |
WATER RESOURCES |
| Egypt's prosperity still depends largely on the agricultural sector and productivity. However , the fearful increase in population-growing at 2.6 percent annually- represents the greater challenge to Egypt's future. The River Nile is the principal water resource and is expected to remain so for years to come, supplying Egypt with more than 95 percent of its present water requirements. With the limitation of Egypt's share and the complexity of developing its north-bound water inflow, the need for rationalizing the different uses of water acquires utmost importance, and to this end the Ministry of Public Works and Water Resources (MPWWR) has adopted several policies . The High Aswan Dam (HAD) was established as a long-term storage reservoir to ensure a constant and regular inflow for both Egypt and Sudan. However, the drought period that prevailed in the region from 1979 and lasted for nine uninterrupted years has seriously affected the storage in the High Dam Lake Reservoir - a fact that motivated the country to develop various scenarios to face the probability of a recurrence of such a catastrophe. Some of the alternatives are to consider reducing, as much as possible, rice and sugarcane cultivation; to minimize the water duties for different applications; and to generate electricity during the winter closure period. The government is studying ways of storing fresh water, which is discharged to the sea during this period, and reusing it in agriculture. Linked to these proposals and plans are studies of the laws and regulations that govern water-use and coordination between ministries, organization, and water users. A supreme ministerial committee for water has been constituted, headed by the minister of public works and water resources and including representatives from concerned agencies, to discuss water policies.
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