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Water resources

River Nile

Egypt's Nile water quota is put at 5.5 billion meters3, which represents 79.3 per cent of the country's water resources and covers around 95 per cent of its current needs.

Subterranean water

The amount of subterranean water used in Egypt is estimated at 6.1 billion meters3/year, which could be increased to 7.5 billion meters3/year.

Rainfall

Around 1.3 billion meters3/year

Recycled sewage water (from agriculture)

Out of a total of some 12 billion meters3/year, Egypt recycles around 5.7 billion meters3. Meanwhile, the goal is to bring the amount of useable recycled water to 9 billion meters3 by 2017.

Recycled sanitary drainage

Out of a total of around 2.5 billion meters3, Egypt recycles some 1.3 billion meters3 for use in reclaiming the desert.

Water usage

By Sector:

Agriculture: 59.3 km3/yr (2006/7 est.)

Industry: 7.8 km3/yr (2006/7 est.)

Domestic: 6.5 km3/yr (2006/7 est.)

Water projects

Several projects are being implemented in the Upper Nile region with the purpose of reducing water waste and introducing new water resources. Of these, the most prominent are:

The Jonglei Canal project

The Jonglei Canal was designed to bypass the Sudd and direct downstream a proportion of the water that is 'lost' from the Nile each year by spill and evaporation in the swamps. Upon completion, the canal should provide around 7 billion meters3 of water to be shared equally by Egypt and Sudan.

The Bahr al-Ghazal project

The project should provide a total of 7 billion meters3 to be shared equally by Egypt and Sudan.

The Mashar swamps project

The project should provide around 4 billion meters3 of water to be shared equally by Egypt and Sudan.

Changing the crop composition

Egypt seeks to change its current crop composition to keep pace with its water, production and export policies. The country plans to save 1.5 billion meters3 of water by planting beet instead cane and by down-sizing rice-planted areas from 1.3 million feddans (0.546 million hectares) to 950 thousand feddans (399 thousand hectares).

Reducing water waste

The amount of water wasted by spill and/or evaporation in Egypt is estimated at a total of 21.7 billion meters3/year (19.4 billion meters3 from the High Dam and 2.3 billion meters3 from irrigation canals).

Egypt's strategy aims at improving irrigation efficiency and conserving water resources by rooting out the weeds and plants which result in the loss of some 0.75 billion meters3 of water a year.

Egypt also seeks to provide some 20.4 billion meters3 of water to reclaim and plant 3.4 million feddans (1.428 million hectares) by 2017

 

 

State Information Service SIS