Centre for Environment & Development for the Arab Region & Europe (CEDARE) organised the closing workshop of the Al Murunah Project on Wednesday 1 April. The project aims to strengthen climate resilience by improving water security in agricultural communities. The event brought together representatives from government institutions, international partners, and experts, including: Dr Mohamed El-Sayed, Deputy Director of the Soils, Water and Environment Research Institute at the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, in cooperation with the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation; Mr Stephen Fragaszy, Regional Manager of the Al Murunah Project at the International Water Management Institute (IWMI); Dr Saber Osman, Head of the Central Administration for Climate Change representing the Ministry of Environment; Dr Namaa Rekhaa, Director of the Technical Office at the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood; and Prof Hala Yousry, Member of the Rural Women Committee at the National Council for Women.
During his speech, Professor Dr Khaled Fahmy, Executive Director of the Centre for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe (CEDARE) and former Minister of Environment, emphasised that the project represents a practical model for linking policy with on-the-ground implementation in the Arab region. He highlighted the importance of leveraging the relationship between institutional action and accumulated implementation experience, as well as benefiting from lessons learned from local experiences.
He explained that the project contributes to improving water-use efficiency, promoting sustainable agricultural practices, and empowering local communities, with a particular focus on women’s economic empowerment and supporting livelihoods in rural areas.
The workshop highlighted key achievements of the project in Beheira Governorate, including:
• Establishing two solar-powered improved surface irrigation units serving 20 feddans and benefiting 14 farmers.
• Establishing a Water Users Association to support participatory and sustainable water resource management.
• Providing a laser land-levelling unit to serve agricultural land in the village and neighbouring communities.
• Implementing two demonstration plots to address soil salinity using nature-based interventions such as agricultural gypsum, compost, and soil leaching.
• Supporting 136 households through small-scale income-generating projects to enhance economic empowerment.
• Training around 500 participants, including farmers, women, and youth, on good agricultural practices, entrepreneurship, and social and economic empowerment.
• Establishing three artichoke processing units managed by 30 women, contributing to increased household income and improved marketing and export opportunities.
• Implementing four Farmer Field Schools focusing on artichoke, sugar beet, and maize, in addition to the natural management of saline soils.
The workshop also showcased success stories from project beneficiaries, reflecting the positive transformation experienced by their families and local communities as a result of implementing innovative solutions for the sustainable management of water and agriculture, in support of national efforts to strengthen water and food security and build climate resilience in Egypt and the wider region.
At the conclusion of the workshop, participants emphasised that the project’s achievements place the country at the threshold of a new phase focused on scaling up and replicating successful experiences, and transforming them into sustainable national programmes.
