Equal distribution of social and economic benefits lies at the heart of South Sinai's sustainable development plans, reports Niveen Wahish A beautiful coastline, breathtaking scenery and a plethora of five-star resorts are the first things that come to mind at the mere mention of South Sinai. In fact, only one thing usually comes to mind -- Sharm El-Sheikh. But South Sinai is much more than just that one city. The governorate, made up of eight cities, has seen tremendous population growth over the past 40 years, from just 5,000 inhabitants in 1960 to 113,229 in 2003. Predictions are that the figure will multiply to 500,000 in 2017. And yet it is Sharm El Sheikh that has attracted all the attention so far. Development there has definitely paid off, with the city, which welcomed 2.3 million tourists in 2003, accounting for 25 per cent of Egypt's total tourist arrivals. At the same time, growth along the Sharm El-Sheikh coastal zone has amplified environmental pressures on adjacent marine sites and on the region's natural resources, according to a study put together by a team of international and local consultants, and commissioned by the European Commission and the governorate. The report also said that, "tourism infrastructure is currently under utilised, while other areas are under developed and not well exploited in terms of tourism. And Bedouins are not well integrated into the rapid economic development, employment opportunities for women are scarce, [and] social and municipal services are lagging behind the newer tourist infrastructure." These are some of the issues that the governorate hopes to tackle using a 64 million euro grant from the European Commission (EC), which should be signed over before the end of the year. A conference entitled "South Sinai Regional Development Programme (SSRDP)" was organised last week by the commission and the governorate, to plan ways to make the best use of those funds. Different stakeholders were involved; representatives of civil society, the private and public sector, the EC and the governorate all participated in the three-day event. The focus was a discussion of the region's developmental priorities. As Georgios Tsitsopoulos, head of operations at the EC delegation in Cairo said, "there is a need to reflect on the future of the region and to ensure the sustainability of growth." The above-mentioned study highlighted the backdrop against which this programme is being carried out. "The governorate has been working to achieve integrated social and economic development to promote the sustainability of tourism activity, while preserving the region's fragile environment and cultural heritage. It also seeks to improve the distribution of social and economic benefits to the entire population." Many said the governorate's efforts have not been sufficient enough. Sheikh Salama Eid Salman Badara, representative of the Badara tribe, said his village -- located 7.5 kilometres away from Ras Sidr -- was "deprived", lacking everything from water to electricity, roads and schools. On a similar note, Gamil Hussein, who runs a Bedouin lodge, said that the government has been encouraging the increased use of computers, while "we do not have the electricity to operate a computer in the first place". South Sinai Governor Mustafa Afifi attributed these and other shortcomings to the late start the governorate got in the development process (which only began there in 1989), as well as the fact that the area's tremendous size required a great deal of funds. Now that funding is on the way, both Badara and Hussein came to the stakeholders' conference to make their case; a great many others who had similar demands, and were hoping that some of the funds would be channelled into meeting their needs, joined them. The conference included six workshops, during which the various challenges facing the governorate were discussed. These ranged from the environment and sustainable development to local development, cultural heritage, social development, equipment and capacity building, as well as public awareness. American University in Cairo physics professor Salah Arafa moderated the workshop on local development, pointing out a number of demands that were common to many of the stakeholders. One was the importance of managing floods to prevent material damage, and utilising the floodwater to enrich the water resources in underground wells. Arafa's workshop also dealt with calls for the diversification of the tourism product; one common complaint was that all the development has been channelled to Sharm El-Sheikh and coastal tourism, at the expense of the governorate's other areas. Many participants said economic activities other than tourism should also be pursued. Encouraging small enterprises that could employ local residents and capitalise on the region's resources was one such demand. In general, participants said that better development of human resources via increased educational opportunities should be the governorate's most important goal. A study carried out by the World Food Programme showed that literacy rates in most Sinai districts were very low, especially among girls. Tackling these problems was at the core of the priorities set out by the conference for the implementation of the five-year programme scheduled to begin next year. The conference's importance stems from its adoption of such a participatory approach. In fact one of the priorities set out by the conference was to "continue participatory consultations with civil society and non-governmental organisations, together with capacity building and equipment". Many participants stressed the need for NGOs to play a greater role in ensuring that such assistance reaches the average citizen. Sheikh Salman Badara said NGOs were more capable of knowing the region's needs, and could thus deliver better services. Petroleum engineer Adel Fadel, head of the South Sinai governorate local council's industry and mining committee, said managing these resources should not just be the governorate's prerogative. He said the governorate should coordinate with the planning, but actual disbursement of funds should be the domain of local city management, because they would be more knowledgeable on where the funds were most needed. This way, Fadel said, "we can avoid having projects that we do not need, or not having projects that we do need." The EC has funded four other projects in South Sinai, including the Ras Mohamed National Park, a 2.5 million euro project that initiated Egypt's first protected area, the Gulf of Aqaba Protectorates Development Programme, which received 10 million euro, as well as the Oil Pollution Combating Centre at the entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba (4.3 million euro), and the St Katherine Protectorate Development Project (6 million euro).
