Netherlands

In the Netherlands, development co-operation occurs through the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Directorate General for International Co-operation. The goal of Dutch development co-operation is sustainable poverty alleviation – “sustainable” in the sense both of ongoing and of minimising the burden on the environment. This is considered to be the essence of development co-operation.

The bilateral development co-operation Programme aims at assisting Egypt to achieve sustainable economic and social development. Themes that are relevant in this respect are poverty alleviation, preservation and improvement of the environment, equal opportunities for women and good governance and democratisation.

The Programme will be oriented more and more towards two main sectors: water management and drinking water/sanitation. The support for two other sectors, agriculture and health/population, will be reduced. The support to the sectors of water management and drinking water/sanitation will be increased according to the concept of the sector approach. Geographically there is a focus on activities at the national level and on activities at the level of Fayoum Governorate.

General Forms of Co-operation: Assistance through development projects oriented to support an entire sector, rather than scattered projects.

Status of Ongoing Projects

Fayoum Water Management Project III
Commitment: €5.622 million
Total Disbursement: €3.06 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, Fayoum Governorate

Alexandria Water General Authority Operation and Maintenance Project/II
Commitment: €1.905 million
Total Disbursement: €1.819 million

Advisory Panel Project on Water Management – Phase III
Commitment: €1.956 million
Total Disbursement: €926,000
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation

National Potato Cultivation Project
Commitment: €706,000
Total Disbursement: €670,000
Beneficiary: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation/Agriculture Research Centre

Fayoum Drinking Water & Sanitation Project/Phase III
Commitment: €2.382 million
Total Disbursement: €2.358 millionBeneficiary: Fayoum Governorate, Fayoum Economic General Authority for Water Supply and Sanitation 
Objectives: The project aims to further improve water supply and sanitary conditions in primarily rural Fayoum through strengthening the Fayoum Economic General Authority for Water Supply and Sanitation, FEGAWS, and some NGOs, through the execution of a Programme that provides financial assistance for priority investment projects.

Fayoum Drinking Water & Sanitation & Project/Phase IV
Commitment: €8.129 million
Total Disbursement: €4.482 million
Beneficiary: Fayoum Governorate, Fayoum Economic General Authority forWater Supply and Sanitation

Credit Lines for Development Banks Projects/IBDE & PBDAC
Commitment: €5.554 million
Total Disbursement: €5.092 million

PBDAC Financial Services Improvement Project
Commitment: €1.580 million
Total Disbursement: €498,000
Beneficiary: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Principal Bank

UNFPA/Support Population and Family Planning IEC
Total Disbursement: €912,000
Beneficiary: Ministry of Health and Population

Fayoum Integrated Pest Management Project Phase II/Implementation Phase
Commitment: €6.730 million
Total Disbursement: €3.319 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation

Mainstreaming Women in Agricultural Policies and Practices
Commitment: €945,000
Total Disbursement: €502,000
Beneficiary: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation Policy and Co-ordination Unit

Fayoum Drinking Water Treatment Plant Project
Commitment: €6.696 million
Total Disbursement: €5.385 million
Beneficiary: The Governorate of Fayoum/El Azab Water Authority

Support to NGOs towards the implementation of the ICPD (International Conference on Population and Development) Programme action
Commitment: €479,000
Total Disbursement: €438,000
Objectives: To support Egyptian NGO’s working on population, reproductive health, (including birth control) sexual health and related issues. To increase their sustainability. To assist them in the implementation of the ICPD Plan of Action.

Aswan Nursing Education Project
Commitment: €3.482 million
Total Disbursement: €1.673 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Health and Population/Aswan Directorate of Health

Manual Channel Maintenance Project/Phase III
Commitment: €1.646 million
Total Disbursement: €1.508 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation

Capacity Building on Egyptian NGOs to Continue the Implementation of the Beijing Platform of Action
Commitment: €1.335 million
Total Disbursement: €1.279 million
Objectives: To contribute to the well-functioning of NGOs at the national and governorates levels capable of implementing specific interventions. These are related to the six concerns declared at the briefing conference of Beijing and identified by the NGOs during Phase I of the project and are influencing policies and legislation for increased gender equity & equality.

Water Boards Project
Commitment: €3.403 million
Total Disbursement: €3.137 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation

Groundwater Sector Project
Commitment: €2.055 million
Total Disbursement: €1.598 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation
Objectives: The major goal of the project is to strengthen the management of groundwater resources by MWRI through assistance in the establishment of the Groundwater Sector. This Sector will be provided with sufficient and qualified staff, properly equipped for the development of necessary policies and management programmes targeting the sustainable use of groundwater.

Institutional and Technical Support Programme
Commitment: €3.285 million
Total Disbursement: €1.826 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, The Egyptian Public Authority for Drainage Projects

Fayoum Solid Waste Management Project
Commitment: €1.035 million
Total Disbursement: €797,000
Beneficiary: Governorate of Fayoum
Objectives: To support the Fayoum Governorate to develop an effective and efficient Solid Waste Management organisation with enough financial resources, and less dependency on central government funds in order to improve its municipal solid waste practices. This will contribute to an enhancement of rural livelihoods and an improvement of the environment.

Health Policies and Systems Programme/AHED (Association for Health & Environmental Development)
Commitment: €225,000
Total Disbursement: €223,000
Beneficiary: Association for Health & Environmental Development

Local Culture Fund
Commitment: €525,000
Total Disbursement: €172,000
Objectives: To contribute, through projects, to the strengthening of local cultural activities in Egypt, in the context of culture and development.

Fayoum Family Medicine Programme
Total Disbursement: €1.594 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Health and Population/Fayoum Directorate of Health
Objectives: To promote a pro-active and more holistic approach of the peripheral health care system towards the needs of the communities. To increase demand for and facilitate access to health population and nutrition services, as well as augment awareness about other community services.

CEOSS NGO Training
Commitment: €99,000
Total Disbursement: €73,000
Beneficiary: Coptic Evangelical Organisation for Social Services (CEOSS)

Capacity Building of Women NGOs in Local Communities
Commitment: €77,000
Total Disbursement: €58,000
Beneficiary: Egyptian Centre for Women’s Rights
Objectives: To support women NGOs in local communities and encourage them to play a leading and changing role in society through strengthening their technical expertise and promoting women’s leadership.

Women Action Facility
Commitment: €999,000
Total Disbursement: €292,000
Beneficiary: Fayoum Governorate-National Council for Women Fayoum, Social Fund for Development Fayoum
Objectives: To strengthen social rights and economic opportunities of women to participate effectively in the development processes and contribute to a more effective development and implementation of poverty alleviation policies and Programmes in Fayoum Governorate.

UNDP Project for Capacity Building in Human Rights, Phase II
Commitment: €335,000
Total Disbursement: €112,000

Support to the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights (EOHR)
Commitment: €300,000
Total Disbursement: €23,000

Lake Nasser Flood and Drought Control Project/Climate Change Uncertainty and Flooding Risk + Monitoring & Review of the Project
Commitment: €3.002 million
Total Disbursement: €1.013 million
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation
Objectives: To develop a planning support system to analyse management scenarios for Nile inflows and releases; develop scenarios for the MWRI to tackle floods and droughts, due to climate change, taking into account Nile water management as an integral part of its water policy.

Strengthening the Water Quality Management Unit in MWRI
Commitment: €3.047 million
Total Disbursement: €213,000
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation

Institutional Reform Unit
Commitment: €414,000
Total Disbursement: €100,000
Beneficiary: Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation

Gender Equality Measurement Through Statistics/UNIFEM
Commitment: €366,168
Total Disbursement: €163,000
Beneficiary: National Council for Women
Objectives: Gender Equality Measured Through Statistics’ aim is to strengthen and increase accountability mechanisms in the Arab countries by mainstreaming gender issues and enhancing the capacity of producers of statistics to deliver user-friendly gender statistics.

KAI Citizenship & Peace in Egypt
Commitment: €227,000
Total Disbursement: €43,000
Beneficiary: Coptic Evangelical Organisation for Social Servcices (CEOSS)

Eco-Tourism for Sustainable Development
Commitment: €60,000
Total Disbursement: €27,000
Beneficiary Governorate of Fayoum

Arab Women Speak Out
Commitment: €143,000
Total Disbursement: €46,000
Beneficiary: Save the Children US, Egypt Field Office

Gender Equality at Local Level
Commitment: €257,261
Total Disbursement: €83,000
Beneficiary: Coptic Evangelical Organisation for Social Services CEOSS) and other NGOs
Objectives: To enable community institutions and their members to actively pursue gender equality and good governance in order to reach a democratic, gender-balanced Egyptian society protected by an active citizenry. The project seeks to contribute to women’s empowerment, and expand and deepen civic freedom reflected in improved governance principles.