Mohamed Ghanem, spokesperson for Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, said in a phone-in to a show on Wednesday that the Canal Rehabilitation and Lining Project is witnessing very high implementation rates.

The first phase of the project, launched several months ago in several governorates, saw the completion of the rehabilitation and lining of more than 900 kilometers of irrigation canals, said Ghanem.

He added that the project aims to complete 7,000 kilometers before the middle of next year at a total cost of EGP 18 billion.

Mahmoud Al-Saadi, the supervisor of the project, said that the General Irrigation Department at the irrigation ministry is working with engineers, technicians, and contractors to implement the project.

Ghanem added that the next phase of the project, as per President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi's directives, will continue the rehabilitation and lining of the remaining irrigation canals across the country.

Minister of Irrigation Mohamed Abdel-Aty explained that the project will rationalise the use of water resources, one of the goals of Egypt’s national water resources strategy, which is intended to resolve Egypt's water-related issues by the year 2037.

Only when we improve irrigation processes, give farmers greater access to water and adopt modern irrigation techniques, will we begin to see positive implications on crop yield and productivity, said Abdel-Aty.

He added that the rehabilitation of irrigation canals, a labour-intensive project, will help achieve the state's goals in eliminating unemployment and providing job opportunities.

One of the canals during the lining and development works

Lining works are being carried out for one of the canals in Egypt

Lining works are being carried out for one of the canals in Egypt

One of the Egyptian canals after being developed and lined