The Environment Ministry’s most notable achievements last year: The Environment Ministry released its annual report last month detailing the achievements made during 2024 — launching the carbon market, preserving biodiversity, and launching new waste management initiatives. The report fell under the theme of Towards a Circular Economy and a Fair Green Transition.

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2024 saw more alternative fuel used: The total volume of alternative fuels used in Egypt last year came in at 1.4 mn tons, up from 850k tons in 2023 —- the ministry reported an uptick in cement factories using alternative fuels. Cement was previously highlighted as a key component in the government’s decarbonization strategy.

It also saw the launch of Africa’s first voluntary carbon trading market in Egypt, allowing companies to issue and trade carbon certificates to be bought by other companies looking to offset their emissions.

** There’s a lot more to it: We have everything you need to know about the carbon market in a Going Green published last year.

Waste management saw investments of EGP 4-5 bn last year for 22 waste recycling factories managed by the private sector. Last year saw the launch of the country’s first construction and demolition waste recycling project courtesy of ZeroCarbon and the New Urban Communities Authority.

Also in waste management: Some 35% of the work on the Tenth of Ramadan waste treatment facility was implemented and registering 2k previously informal workers in the waste management system.

Teach them while they’re young: The environment and education ministries launched the Afforestation, Waste Separation at the Source, and Recycling in Schools initiative in October, with hopes of “instilling positive behavior among students to preserve the environment.” The initiative also aims to raise awareness among students and push them to participate in waste recycling systems.

Prioritizing biodiversity: Ministry efforts focusing on preserving biodiversity this year included the launch of the Green Hurghada project that secured USD 3 mn in funding from the Global Environment Facility. The project aims to reduce the city’s emissions and integrate biodiversity considerations into the city’s infrastructure development.

The country’s biodiversity is under threat: The biodiversity landscape in Egypt is abundant, containing over 143 types of globally important species, according to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Threats to this come in the form of pollution, habitat destruction for development, and hunting.

Moves in the right direction: Back in July, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly issued directives to stop turning green spaces into commercial areas, in line with the government’s 100 mn trees initiative.

Efforts to boost ecotourism: The ministry set up 51 housing units for local communities in Sharm El Sheikh’s Al Gharqana village — a popular ecotourism hub — where tourism has become a livelihood alongside fishing. Installing electricity, sewage networks, and planting trees is also part of the ongoing project.

Dive deeper: We look at what needs to happen to get ecotourism booming in Egypt in a GoingGreen published in 2023. Primary challenges came in the form of a lack of clear legislation, the informal nature of much of the work, and tight security measures.

Still, the sector is growing: The Environment Ministry reported that overall income generated from natural reserves increased 40% y-o-y in 2024.

The year also saw notable efforts to combat air pollution, with the ministry reducing emissions by some 334k tons through its efforts. The number of air pollution monitoring stations rose to 121 nationwide and AI technology was utilized to monitor and predict future changes in air quality.

Why this matters: Egypt’s air was deemed among the most polluted in the world in 2023 according to the IQAir’s World Air Quality Report 2023, which said that the country’s average PM2.5 concentration reached a record 42.4 — 8.5 times the World Health Organization’s annual air quality guidelines. We’ll be on the lookout for the 2024 report which we expect to be published sometime this quarter.

It was a year for more transparency: Last year saw the publication of the first Green GrowthPolicy Review of Egypt by the OECD. The World Bank’s Country Environmental Analysis was also published last summer. And in November, in conjunction with the World Urban Forum, the World Bank launched the Atlas of Egyptian Sustainable Cities — an initiative to assess sustainability in key urban sectors.

The ministry received global recognition for its work, with Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad making it onto Forbes’ Middle East Sustainability Leaders 2024 list. The ministry was also picked up for an ESRI SAG award inNovember for its efforts applying geographic information systems for the protection and management of biodiversity. Finally, the minister received the Sheikh Zayed II Medal from the UAE’s leader for facilitating climate finance negotiations during COP28.

Your top green economy stories for the week:

  • Jadeed eyes regional expansion: Renewable energy solutions provider JadeedClimate Tech plans to expand into China, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE as part of its plan to boost its global presence. (Al Mal)
  • The African Development Bank approved a USD 170 mn loan to Egypt to carry out the “second phase of a program to foster private sector development and economic diversification, with special emphasis on green growth.”
  • AOI’s solar panel plants goes live this year: State-owned Arab Organization for Industrialization’s (AOI) joint solar panel manufacturing project with Sweden’s Sunshine Pro is set to be operational in July of this year and have a production capacity of 1 GW-worth of panels by July 2026.
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