2005 - 2006 - Pinsent Masons Water Yearbook 2012

EGYPT PART 2: COUNTRY ANALYSIS
New treatment capacity of 1.4 million m 3 per day is planned, 85% from planned new industrial cities.
Million M 3 per day Capacity Used
Current 6.0 4.5
New facilities 9.0 5.5
Total 15.0 10.0
LE / M 3 Current Cost recovery
Water 0.20 0.50
Sewerage 0.00 0.60
Total 1.10 0.20
Currently effluents from 18 million people (out of an urban total of 26 million) are treated and it is
planned for this to rise to cover the 40 million people forecast to be living in urban areas by 2017.
These facilities would require LE2 billion per annum for operational costs. It is understood that the
performance of these facilities is generally poor. In addition, 80% of industrial waste water from
process applications is discharged untreated. 20% of groundwater resources are now non potable
due to pollution.
Population
2003 (million) 67.6
2015 (million) 80.9
Urbanisation in 2003 43%
Urbanisation by 2015 45%
In urban agglomerations, 2015 24%
Infrastructure development costs
Since 1983, £30 billion has been invested in service improvement. Potable water reached 90% of the
population in 2002. During this time, 1900 water treatment works were built, handling 18 million m 3
per day and wastewater treatment capacity was expanded from 1.0 million m 3 per day to 8.2 million
m 3 per day through the construction of 220 WWTW's. Revenues only cover 40% of costs because of
subsidies, inefficiency, high levels of leakage, and non-paying state customers.
The Ministry of Public Works and the Ministry of Housing and Public Utilities have allocated £3.5
billion (along with an €90 million loan from the EIB) for the Greater Cairo Wastewater programme.
This involves an extension of the sewerage network, 20 new water and wastewater treatment works
and remedial work to alleviate water source pollution.
Urban Data
Served by piped water 93%
Access to sewerage 51%
With sewage treatment 10%
Aid related funding has been the norm
USAID has been the largest single donor in Egypt for urban water pollution treatment equipment
projects in Cairo, Alexandria and other medium-sized cities. Since 1975, USAID has invested over
US$2 billion in urban water and wastewater infrastructure serving about 22 million people. More than
US$900 million of this money has been focussed on sewerage and sewage treatment in Cairo. The
projects seek to treat raw sewage and improve water and wastewater systems of several cities.
Recent projects have included connecting 700,000 residents in Cairo and Embaba to the sewerage
network, along with more than 500,000 residents in Suez. In Cairo, three potable water reservoirs
serving the city at Darassa entered service providing water to 3 million people. This funding
programme continues, with US$45million in aid to improve sewage treatment in the southern city of
Luxor being announced in March 1999.
Freshwater
Annual availability (1998) 2.80km 3
Per capita 43m 3
Annual withdrawal (1993) 55.1km 3
Domestic (1993) 6%
83 Pinsent Masons Water Yearbook 2005 – 2006