Egypt Launches Development Projects to Support Nile Basin Countries

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) under construction near Ethiopia’s border with Sudan on the Blue Nile (Reuters)
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) under construction near Ethiopia’s border with Sudan on the Blue Nile (Reuters)
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Egypt Launches Development Projects to Support Nile Basin Countries

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) under construction near Ethiopia’s border with Sudan on the Blue Nile (Reuters)
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) under construction near Ethiopia’s border with Sudan on the Blue Nile (Reuters)

Egypt is launching a number of projects to support the Nile Basin countries and maximize the exploitation of water resources.

The Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation announced the final preparations to equip the weather early warning center in Kinshasa, ahead of its inauguration next month.

It also dispatched the equipment for the center, and several Egyptian experts will arrive in Congo to install the equipment and start a trial operation.

Egypt experts will train the Congolese staff at the center on dealing with rain and flood forecasts and aerial imagery systems.

Minister Mohamed Abdel Ati announced that the new center is equipped with the latest rain forecast systems and will be concerned with studying climate change in Congo.

The center will contribute to protecting Congolese citizens from probable sudden climate disasters, Abdel Ati said.

The minister pointed out that Egypt established the Kinshasa center to transfer its expertise in the field of the integrated management of water resources to the Nile Basin countries.

Egypt and Congo signed a protocol for technical cooperation in the water resources field, under which the “Integrated Management for Water Resources” project is implemented, said the minister, adding that the project is carried out via an Egyptian grant to maximize Congo’s use of water resources and boost its capability to manage these resources.

Over the past few years, Egypt implemented a number of bilateral projects with the Nile Basin countries in the fields of water and electricity linkage, including rainwater harvesting dam, underground drinking water treatment plants to provide clean drinking water to remote areas that are far from the sources of water, fish farms, and river marinas.

Egypt and Sudan have been negotiating with Ethiopia for almost ten years to conclude a legal agreement regulating the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which Addis Ababa built on the main tributary of the Nile to generate electric power.

Egypt and Sudan are calling for a binding legal agreement, that Ethiopia rejects, which led to the suspension of negotiations.



Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
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Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed

The Palestinian Authority said internet and fixed-line communication services were down in Gaza on Thursday following an attack on the territory's last fibre optic cable it blamed on Israel.

"All internet and fixed-line communication services in the Gaza Strip have been cut following the targeting of the last remaining main fibre optic line in Gaza," the PA's telecommunications ministry said in a statement, accusing Israel of attempting to cut Gaza off from the world, AFP reported.

"The southern and central Gaza Strip have now joined Gaza City and the northern part of the Strip in experiencing complete isolation for the second consecutive day," the ministry said in a statement.

It added that its maintenance and repair teams had been unable to safely access the sites where damage occurred to the fibre optic cable.

"The Israeli occupation continues to prevent technical teams from repairing the cables that were cut yesterday", it said, adding that Israeli authorities had prevented repairs to other telecommunication lines in Gaza "for weeks and months".

The Palestinian Red Crescent said the communication lines were "directly targeted by occupation forces".

It said the internet outage was hindering its emergency services by impeding communication with first responder teams in the field.

"The emergency operations room is also struggling to coordinate with other organisations to respond to humanitarian cases."

Maysa Monayer, spokeswoman for the Palestinian communication ministry, told AFP that "mobile calls are still available with very limited capacity" in Gaza for the time being.

Now in its 21st month, the war in Gaza has caused massive damage to infrastructure across the Palestinian territory, including water mains, power lines and roads.