Egyptian Cabinet to Benefit from Former Headquarters in Investment

Madbouly follows up efforts to benefit from state headquarters across the country. (Egyptian government)
Madbouly follows up efforts to benefit from state headquarters across the country. (Egyptian government)
TT
20

Egyptian Cabinet to Benefit from Former Headquarters in Investment

Madbouly follows up efforts to benefit from state headquarters across the country. (Egyptian government)
Madbouly follows up efforts to benefit from state headquarters across the country. (Egyptian government)

The Egyptian government seeks to benefit from its former headquarters following the transfer of ministries into the New Administrative Capital.

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly stressed the government’s keenness on continuous follow-up of the state assets and on taking necessary steps to optimize them.

The PM noted that there are reports on several assets across the Egyptian provinces, including many proposals and recommendations on exploiting these assets by issuing them for investment by the private sector to achieve more returns.

Madbouly held a meeting on Thursday to follow up on optimizing the state assets. The meeting was attended by several ministers.

Egyptian government spokesperson Nader Saad said the meeting touched on some of the assets in the provinces of Cairo and Giza that overlook the Nile River in order to optimize them by issuing them for investment.

Last month, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi met with Madbouly and cabinet members at the Strategic Leadership Center in the New Administrative Capital.

The spokesman for the Presidency, Ahmed Fahmy, stated that the meeting discussed the government's plan to relocate ministries and various state agencies and institutions to the new capital.

According to the spokesman, Sisi directed intensifying efforts to ensure the government's move to the capital was smooth.

He noted that it could only be achieved through the modernization of buildings and premises and the qualification of workers, and providing training programs to government personnel to teach them modern methods of administration.

"These efforts, in turn, would contribute to establishing an efficient and effective administrative body," he said.

Moreover, Saad added that the meeting pointed out that the Sovereign Fund of Egypt would start evaluating the assets which were showcased during the meeting and the buildings and lands they have.

The assessment will be based on global assessors for the sake of marketing the assets and establishing investment projects on them, especially since these lands are in unique regions on the Nile River.



'Thirst War’: A Parallel Battle Gazans Fight Without Weapons

A Palestinian child watches his peers as they wait to receive food from a charity kitchen in Khan Younis on Sunday (Reuters). 
A Palestinian child watches his peers as they wait to receive food from a charity kitchen in Khan Younis on Sunday (Reuters). 
TT
20

'Thirst War’: A Parallel Battle Gazans Fight Without Weapons

A Palestinian child watches his peers as they wait to receive food from a charity kitchen in Khan Younis on Sunday (Reuters). 
A Palestinian child watches his peers as they wait to receive food from a charity kitchen in Khan Younis on Sunday (Reuters). 

Gaza is grappling with an acute water shortage as Israel tightens its blockade, closing border crossings, halting fuel supplies, and cutting off two main water lines since early January—around two weeks before a ceasefire took effect on the 19th of the same month.

“For six days, no water has reached us—not from the municipality nor from the wells dug in the area, as there’s no fuel to power the generators,” said 57-year-old Mohammed al-Uraini, a resident of al-Shati refugee camp in western Gaza City, speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat.

Even before the war, Gaza was already facing a severe water crisis due to the long-standing Israeli blockade. In 2019, UNICEF estimated that only 1 in 10 residents had direct access to safe drinking water. At the time, Gaza’s population was 1.8 million; it has since surpassed two million.

Fuel Shortages

UNICEF warned in a statement last Saturday that the average daily water supply for one million people in Gaza—including 400,000 children—has dropped from 16 liters per person to just 6. The agency warned that if fuel runs out in the coming weeks, that figure could fall to below 4 liters, forcing families to rely on unsafe water sources and raising the risk of disease outbreaks, especially among children.

The United Nations defines the minimum daily requirement for personal and household water use as 50–100 liters per person.

Tamer Al-Nahal, 61, owns a water well that used to supply more than 50 neighboring homes in al-Shati. He told Asharq Al-Awsat he can no longer afford the 10 liters of fuel required to operate the well. “Each liter used to cost about 20 shekels ($6), but now it’s around 70 shekels ($19),” he said. Occasionally, local institutions would donate fuel to power generators, but these contributions have stopped due to rising costs.

Many Gaza families are now forced to carry water in plastic jugs for distances up to 500 meters just to find water fit for human use.

Long Queues and Rising Hardship

Ezzedine Abu Hammam, 24, from Gaza’s western port area, said he spends more than an hour daily in a long queue to collect around 50 liters of drinking water, which he then carries up to the fourth-floor apartment where his 13-member family lives.

“It’s exhausting to wait that long just for a small amount of water, and then carry it upstairs,” he said. “Even when municipal water was available, it was so salty it tasted like seawater, but at least it eased the burden.”

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, the water crisis is exacerbating public health risks, increasing the spread of diarrhea and skin diseases. The ministry reported 52 child deaths linked to these conditions, including malnutrition.

“Worsening the Crisis”

Assem al-Nabeeh, spokesperson for the Gaza Municipality, said the city—like the rest of the Strip—is facing a severe thirst crisis due to renewed Israeli military operations and incursions into some areas.

He explained to Asharq Al-Awsat that the Israeli-run “Mekorot” water line, which supplied nearly 70% of Gaza City’s needs, was shut down last Thursday. As a result, the city and other municipalities have lost access to groundwater wells, which were previously powered using fuel.

“Some alternative water sources have also been destroyed by airstrikes or ground operations,” he added, citing the complete destruction of wells in Gaza City’s al-Zaytoun neighborhood as a deliberate move to deepen the humanitarian crisis.