The Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Mohamed Abdel Aty, participated in the Ministerial Meeting of the Egyptian-Dutch Water Advisory Council, chaired by and Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and Water, Cora van Nieuwenhuizen, on Wednesday in The Hague city of the Netherlands. During the meeting, members reviewed the most important activities of the council since its last meeting in May 2018, with a summary of the results of the studies and the work tasks carried out by a number of Dutch experts in Egypt. These studies were carried out in cooperation with the Egyptian Authority for Drainage Projects. Dutch experts' studies in Egypt included a study on the development of covered drainage systems in Egypt, and raising its efficiency in accordance with the latest drainage systems, and applying them to Egyptian conditions, as well as a study on improving the water quality. Additionally, the studies also addressed the protection and development of the beaches of Port Said in order to be able to face the sea level rise. The Egyptian-Dutch Water Management Advisory Council was established in 1976, and has been working since then to support the exchange of experiences between the Egyptian and Dutch governments in the areas of planning and management of water resources, including maximising the return of water in agriculture, improving water quality, sewage treatment technologies, and integrated management for coastal areas. Meanwhile, a delegation from the ministry of water resources and irrigation participated in the meetings of the specialised technical committee for infrastructure in Africa. The meeting which was held in Cairo on Tuesday, dealt with the progress of the work plan for the infrastructure projects for the years 2017-2019, as well as the preparation of the work plan for the projects for 2020-2030. Representatives from 37 countries from the 54 member states of the African Union participated in the meeting. Regional economic groups, regional and continental institutions, and international organisations related to infrastructure have also taken part in the meeting. Egypt was elected as president of the specialised technical committee for the term 2019-2021.
