Egypt to Raise Awareness About Water Pollution Risks

The Pyramid of Khufu, the largest of the Great Pyramids of Giza, is seen before sunset during high temperature behind a canal which flows into the River Nile on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt August 4, 2022. (Reuters)
The Pyramid of Khufu, the largest of the Great Pyramids of Giza, is seen before sunset during high temperature behind a canal which flows into the River Nile on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt August 4, 2022. (Reuters)
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Egypt to Raise Awareness About Water Pollution Risks

The Pyramid of Khufu, the largest of the Great Pyramids of Giza, is seen before sunset during high temperature behind a canal which flows into the River Nile on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt August 4, 2022. (Reuters)
The Pyramid of Khufu, the largest of the Great Pyramids of Giza, is seen before sunset during high temperature behind a canal which flows into the River Nile on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt August 4, 2022. (Reuters)

Egypt's Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation will carry out a major clean-up campaign along the Nile River.

A statement by the Ministry on Friday stated that the campaign will protect and clean the Nile River from pollution and plastic waste, preserve aquatic biodiversity, and raise environmental awareness.

“This major campaign to clean the Nile River will be recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest campaign ever in the world, and a distinct opportunity as it is the longest cleaning campaign in terms of kilometers, with the participation of the largest number of participants, and the removal of the largest expected amount of waste,” said Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mohamed Abdel-Atti.

The campaign will be carried out in Cairo, Giza, Qalyubia , Dakahlia, Damietta, Gharbia, Menoufia, Kafr El Sheikh, Beheira, Beni Suef, Minya, Assiut, Sohag, Qena, Luxor and Aswan, the statement added.

It will be launched on September 17, coinciding with the celebration of the World Cleanliness Day, as part of the ongoing preparations for holding the Fifth Cairo Water Week and preparing for activities during the upcoming COP27 climate conference that will be held in Egypt’s Sharm El Sheikh.

The Ministry of Irrigation has kicked off a strategy to manage water in Egypt until the year 2037 with investments worth more than $50 billion.

The Nile water accounts for more than 90 percent of Egypt’s needs or 55.5 billion cubic meters.



US to Award $306 mln for Bird Flu Monitoring and Preparedness

Test tubes are seen in front of a displayed Moderna logo in this illustration taken, May 21, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Test tubes are seen in front of a displayed Moderna logo in this illustration taken, May 21, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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US to Award $306 mln for Bird Flu Monitoring and Preparedness

Test tubes are seen in front of a displayed Moderna logo in this illustration taken, May 21, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Test tubes are seen in front of a displayed Moderna logo in this illustration taken, May 21, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

The US Department of Health and Human Services said on Friday it would award $306 million in funds to help bird flu monitoring, as the virus spreads in dairy herds and farm workers across the country.

The country in December reported its first severe human case of bird flu in a Louisiana resident, who was hospitalized in a critical condition after suspected contact with an infected backyard flock, Reuters reported.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed 61 human cases nationally since April, mostly in workers on dairy farms where the virus infected cattle, although it noted that bird flu still represents a low risk to the general public.

"While the risk to humans remains low, we are always preparing for any possible scenario that could arise," said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra.

The US Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response will award about $183 million in funding for regional, state and local programs for hospital preparedness and pathogen treatment centers, among others.

The CDC will award about $111 million to help monitor the disease as well as manufacture, store and distribute additional influenza diagnostic test kits for surveillance.

The National Institutes of Health will award about $11 million for additional research into potential medicines for the disease.

The HHS said it, together with the United States Department of Agriculture, are working closely with federal, state, local and industry partners to protect human and animal health as well as food safety.