Napoleon and the pyramids
Wetskills-Egypt 2024 – Blog day 3 – Yesterday we went to the Arab Academy in Alexandria to be introduced with four urgent water related cases that Egypt currently faces. Each…
Wetskills-Egypt 2024
- This event has passed.
Wetskills-Egypt 2024
February 24 - March 8
Wetskills back in Egypt
For this event we were in the vibrant, challenging and historic City of Caïro! With participants passionate about water & sustainability, who want to contribute to innovate solutions on challenging water issues in the Egypt and the Arab culture, and work in an intercultural team of fellow-participants.
This edition of Wetskills Challenge is the second one in Egypt (after the first one in 2012). The finals were held at a special workshop at the Embassy of the Kingdom of The Netherlands, where the teams presented their results.
Movies with previous Wetskills events in the MENA Region
Jordan (2023)
Oman (2019)
Joining this Wetskills Event – What do you get?
A unique learning experience where you will tackle real-life water challenges with your own team!
♦ You will increase your skills in: international cooperation; problem solving, cross-cultural and interdisciplinary teamwork, networking and presenting (pitch & poster);
♦ You will get the opportunity to connect with other international water students/young professionals;
♦ You will exclusively visit the Wetskills finals and awarding at the Cairo Water Week;
♦ You will visit Cairo, Luxor and surroundings: water-related, natural and cultural sites, and meetings with water experts;
♦ You will learn, network and experience more about water challenges in the Arab region, the main stakeholders and organisations, contemporary issues and current business opportunities;
♦ You will receive a certificate of participation upon completion of the programme.
More information
Contact: Johan Oost, johan.oost@wetskills.com or Dr. Alia Amer (Agriculture Research Institute and Wetskills Team), alia.amer@wetskills.com or Loay Alatrash (Wetskills Team), loay.alatrash@wetskills.com
Event Cases
Case 1: Better Irrigation Practices
Case owner: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation (MWRI)
Egypt is facing a severe water shortage due to limited freshwater resources, population growth, and climate change. The country heavily relies on the Nile River, but its share of the river’s water for agriculture is limited by international agreements. Limited and irregular rainfall, and depleted groundwater worsen the situation. Inefficient water management practices and water pollution further contribute to the problem. To address this, Egypt wants to improve water management, innovate water use and irrigation techniques, and implement water-saving practices. It requires a combination of technologies to increase water unit production and ensure sustainable water use.
Case 2: Flash Flood Risk Reduction
Case owner: Water Resources Research Institute (WRRI)
Marsa Matruh Governorate in Egypt, located in an arid region with Wadi systems, faces vulnerability to flash floods due to its terrain and climate. Challenges include unpredictability, poor infrastructure, environmental impact, economic consequences, and public safety threats. A holistic approach is vital for the region to effectively address this situation. This involves enhanced monitoring, strategic land-use planning, flood preparedness, ecosystem conservation, and inter-authority collaboration. Additionally, rainwater harvesting can be implemented to address water scarcity issues, contributing to a greener Marsa Matruh while aligning with sustainable development goals amid climate change.
Pitch & Poster
Pitch & Poster
Case 3: Water Footprint Compensation
Case owner: Water Footprint Implementation (WFI)
In March 2023, Water Footprint Implementation (WFI) successfully launched the Water Footprint Compensation initiative during the United Nations 2023 Water Conference in New York. Water compensation is a concept that implies industries to compensate their water use within the value chain, as additional step of lowering the water footprint. Water industries (local and international) can mitigate (the negative impacts of) their water consumption by taking action to replenish, restore or protect the water system from which the water has been abstracted. It is based on the principle of a litre for a litre and leads to more investments from industries in regular water management practices. Egypt is an arid country with scarce water resources. How can Egypt benefit from this concept of Water Footprint Compensation to ensure an increase in water availability or quality?
Case 4: Increasing water availability
Case owner: World Waternet (WWN)
Egypt’s main source of freshwater is the Nile River. The river supplies 55 billion m³ of freshwater every year, which represents 97% of all renewable water resources in Egypt. Overall, the Nile River constitutes about 90% Egypt’s water supply. Average rainfall in Egypt is estimated at 18 mm or 1.8 billion m³ per year, and Egypt has four different groundwater aquifers. Egypt is classified as a water scarce country as it has less than 1000 m³ of fresh water per year per capita. Water availability in the country is facing problems due to population growth, rapid economic development in the countries of the Nile Basin, pollution and environmental degradation, causing an annual water deficit of up to 7 billion m3. How can Egypt find new resources for drinking water, protect water from pollution and optimize the country’s resources?
Pitch & Poster
Pitch & Poster – winning team!
Event Partners
