Cairo: Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Hani Sewilam affirmed that the Cairo office of the Islamic Network for Water Resources Development and Management (INWRDAM) will serve as a strategic platform to support research, facilitate capacity-building programs, develop effective water management policies, and enhance climate adaptation capabilities. The statement followed a report by Aref Gharib, Head of the Nile Water Affairs Sector, on the ongoing collaboration between the ministry and INWRDAM.

According to State Information Service Egypt, under Egypt’s hosting agreement for an INWRDAM branch office signed in October 2025 during the “8th Cairo Water Week,” a training program on water treatment and desalination is currently underway. Operating under the Water-Food-Energy-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus framework, the program is funded by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA).

It is implemented through the Drainage Research Institute of the
National Water Research Center, with 20 in-person trainees from various ministry departments and additional virtual participants from Jordan, Tunisia, Syria, Algeria, Morocco, and Lebanon. The training runs from March 29 to April 9. Sewilam stressed that the program reflects the ministry’s commitment to developing technical expertise, enhancing water management efficiency, and advancing water treatment and reuse, key pillars of Egypt’s second-generation water strategy (Water 2.0).

The program was inaugurated in the presence of Dr. Gharib, Dr. Marwan Al-Raqad, Executive Director of INWRDAM, and Ayman El-Saadi, Vice President of the National Water Research Center. It combines theoretical instruction with practical fieldwork, including visits to the Bahr El-Baqar Treatment Plant and the Galala Desalination Plant, two major national projects, alongside hands-on laboratory training, linking scientific knowledge with real-world application.