Egypt rethinks water strategy, starting with new irrigation minister
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has appointed a new irrigation minister with wide experience in water resources in the context of the Nile crisis.
As negotiations between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) have stalled, Cairo is focusing on rationalizing water consumption and maximizing its water resources.
On Aug. 14, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi appointed Hani Swailem, who has extensive experience in seawater desalination and water resource management, to replace former Irrigation Minister Mohammad Abdel-Aty.
Swailem has worked as a professor of water resources management and sustainable development and chaired UNESCO's Climate Change and Water Management Department at Aachen University in Germany.
He also established the Middle East's first center for sustainable development and desalination research using solar energy at the American University of Cairo.
