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Al-Ahram Weekly 1 - 7 July 1999 Issue No. 436 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 1 - 7 July 1999 Issue No. 436
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Profile Features Special Interview Travel Living Sports Time Out Chronicles People Cartoons Letters Environment balancing act
By Mona El-FiqiAT A MEETING with members of the American Chamber of Commerce last week, Nadia Makram Ebeid, state minister for environmental affairs, stressed that investment prospects in the environmental field in Egypt have never been brighter. "Potential investments in environmental projects in Egypt are estimated at $800 million," Ebeid said.
"Our biggest challenge is to strike a balance between accelerated economic development and the protection of the environment," Ebeid said. The mega-projects now under way in Toshka and the East of Port Said area are expected to change the face of the country within the next two decades. The development of these projects must be balanced against increased efforts to preserve the environment in these new areas, the minister said.
As part of its policy to make environmental concerns an integral part of the country's national plan, the State Ministry for Environmental Affairs is fostering a closer partnership between the government and the private sector. "There are very profitable business opportunities in the fields of environmental services and industrial pollution abatement," said Ebeid.
The state will spend LE40 billion in the coming 20 years to introduce environmentally-sound agrochemicals and wastewater management techniques, she added.
"Overall investment in industry in the next two decades is estimated at LE125 billion, 20 per cent of which will be geared towards introducing clean production," the minister said.
