EIB has put €1.2bn into Egypt's water since 1989
Treatment plants in Alexandria and Helwan will serve 3.6 million people, and Nile Delta schemes are cleaning drains and canals.
Elizabeth Wilson
Cairo — The European Investment Bank has provided more than €1.2 billion for water projects in Egypt since 1989, its vice-president Gelsomina Vigliotti said at the opening of Cairo Water Week 2026 on Sunday 25 October.
The projects
- Alexandria West wastewater treatment plant: to serve 1.5 million people
- Helwan wastewater project: nearly 2.1 million people
- Kafr el Sheikh water quality scheme: nearly 400,000 people
- Kitchener Drain programme: around 200,000 people, combining wastewater treatment, solid waste management and drain rehabilitation
Vigliotti said water sustains communities, farming and industry, so protecting it protects health, food security and livelihoods. She welcomed Egypt's Nexus of Water, Food and Energy initiative, which links irrigation, wastewater and clean energy.
Worldwide, the EIB Group aims to raise water financing to €15 billion over 2025–2027.
Source: Daily News Egypt, 25 October 2026.
