News in Brief:
– Egypt launched the Future of Egypt initiative to boost food security and reduce reliance on imports.
– The government hopes to realise this by reclaiming land, modernising irrigation, and building grain silos.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has inaugurated the first phase of an ambitious agricultural development project known as the Future of Egypt initiative. This large-scale plan aims to enhance the nation’s food security and significantly decrease its dependence on food imports.
The initiative, overseen by the state-run Future of Egypt Authority, seeks to reclaim roughly 1.8 million hectares of land by 2030. Modernisation of irrigation systems and increased agricultural production are also central components of the project.
Meanwhile, Colonel Bahaa El-Ghanam, the authority’s executive director, outlined specific targets. These targets include eliminating the need to import two million tonnes of wheat, 180,000 tonnes of corn, and 360,000 tonnes of sugar annually. This import substitution is expected to generate foreign currency savings of $3.7 billion.
Additionally, the project aims to achieve a 20% to 25% increase in Egypt’s agricultural exports within the next five years.
Infrastructure developments and water management
Also, the initiative incorporates the construction of 24 grain silos with a combined storage capacity exceeding 100,000 tonnes. These silos, built by China’s Famsun Group, will be operational for the current wheat harvest season. Notably, payment for the silos was conducted in Egyptian pounds to lessen the pressure on the nation’s foreign currency reserves, which are currently strained due to the ongoing economic crisis.
These silos are equipped with drying units to minimise post-harvest losses, a significant issue in Egypt where traditional sun-drying methods can lead to losses of 15-20%.
Meantime, President El-Sisi stressed the critical importance of water management efficiency during the launch ceremony. He underscored the necessity of utilising every available drop of water and implementing modern irrigation techniques. This comes amid concerns about potential water shortages due to the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Nile River.
The project also entails the development of an industrial zone dedicated to food manufacturing. This zone will include facilities like an 80,000-tonne refrigeration unit and factories for processing potatoes, sugar, and other agricultural products.
Also, the project’s facilities and a substantial portion of the designated agricultural land are situated along the newly built 120-kilometre Rawd Al Farag-New Dabaa axis road. This road, constructed as part of the national road network and one of President El-Sisi’s flagship infrastructure projects, extends westward out of Cairo.
