Egypt Calls for Securing Water Resources in Africa

The Egyptian Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, called for securing water resources in Africa (AFP)
The Egyptian Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, called for securing water resources in Africa (AFP)
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Egypt Calls for Securing Water Resources in Africa

The Egyptian Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, called for securing water resources in Africa (AFP)
The Egyptian Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, called for securing water resources in Africa (AFP)

Egypt called for "securing water resources" in Africa, saying it is an "inevitable" issue in light of the expected severe impacts due to climate change.

The Egyptian Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, stressed during the virtual meeting of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) the need for awareness and knowledge to face the challenges and the risks in the African continent to reduce emissions.

Cairo's call to preserve and secure water resources coincides with long-standing disputes with Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) that Addis Ababa is building on the Nile River.

Speaking at the AMCEN meeting themed "Securing people's well-being and sustainability in Africa," the minister asserted the need for African countries to have ambitions in implementing measures to protect against climate change.

The Egyptian government lauded the efforts of the African Group of Negotiators and the African Union to support Egypt's hosting of a conference organized by the UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 27), announced the minister.

The meeting will be held in 2022, said Fouad, hoping that the conference will unite the African voice on the issue.

She affirmed her conviction to support African countries and institutions to put African climate change issues at the top of their concerns.

Fouad also stressed the necessity of collective action, solidarity, and coordination among African countries to support mechanisms for implementing the Green Agenda.

"Egypt has taken many steps to prepare a framework for a green recovery strategy, and several measures have been taken in this regard, including the issuance of green bonds, the first of its kind in African countries and the Middle East," she said, explaining that the Egyptian government aims to support renewable energy projects, sustainable transport, and waste management.

Earlier, the UN Security Council issued a statement calling for negotiations leading to a "binding agreement" on the dam.

However, Ethiopia refused to recognize any demands arising from the statement of the Security Council.



UN Seeks $6 Billion to Ease Hunger Catastrophe in Sudan

Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Seeks $6 Billion to Ease Hunger Catastrophe in Sudan

Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)

UN officials on Monday asked for $6 billion for Sudan this year from donors to help ease what they called the world's worst ever hunger catastrophe and the mass displacement of people brought on by civil war.

The UN appeal represents a rise of more than 40% from last year's for Sudan at a time when aid budgets around the world are under strain, partly due to a pause in funding announced by US President Donald Trump last month that has affected life-saving programs across the globe.

The UN says the funds are necessary because the impact of the 22-month war between Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) - that has already displaced a fifth of its population and stoked severe hunger among around half its population - looks set to worsen.

World Food Program chief Cindy McCain, speaking via video to a room full of diplomats in Geneva, said: "Sudan is now the epicenter of the world's largest and most severe hunger crisis ever."

She did not provide figures, but Sudan's total population currently stands at about 48 million people. Among previous world famines, the Bengal Famine of 1943 claimed between 2 million and 3 million lives, according to several estimates, while millions are believed to have died in the Great Chinese Famine of 1959-61.

Famine conditions have been reported in at least five locations in Sudan, including displacement camps in Darfur, a UN statement said, and this was set to worsen with continued fighting and the collapse of basic services.

"This is a humanitarian crisis that is truly unprecedented in its scale and its gravity and it demands a response unprecedented in scale and intent," UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said.

One of the famine-stricken camps was attacked by the RSF last week as the group tries to tighten its grip on its Darfur stronghold.

While some aid agencies say they have received waivers from Washington to provide aid in Sudan, uncertainty remains on the extent of coverage for providing famine relief.

The UN plan aims to reach nearly 21 million people within the country, making it the most ambitious humanitarian response so far for 2025, and requires $4.2 billion - the rest being for those displaced by the conflict.