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CAIRO: Coinciding with the 47th anniversary of the Oct. 6 war in 1973, the Egyptian government has issued a report on the most important development projects implemented by the state in Sinai since 2014.

About 600 billion Egyptian pounds ($38.2 billion) has been spent on development, reconstruction and construction work, according to the report.

The Egyptian Cabinet’s media center confirmed that Egypt views development in Sinai as a national security issue, and the state’s strategy is based on the implementation of development, construction, service and investment projects there.

The report highlighted examples of the most important projects that have been implemented, including urban development and the provision of adequate housing for Sinai residents. The government has established 46,949 housing units, built 2,290 Bedouin homes and constructed 500 housing units to develop the Ruwaizat area.

The report reviewed the size of the achievements in new cities. It said that the new city of Ismailia includes 52,019 housing units while Salam Misr City, East Port Said includes 4,340 housing units. The number of units in the tourist area is 4,889.

The New Rafah City includes 10,016 residential units and 400 Bedouin homes, in addition to services and facilities.

The report highlighted the establishment of a road network with a total length of 2,400 km and the completion of four tunnels under the Suez Canal to connect Sinai with the cities of the canal.

The government has completed the digging of the Al-Shahid Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel to connect Sinai with all parts of the country. This is in addition to developing and upgrading the efficiency of six ports in Sinai and establishing the port berths as part of the East Port Said Development project, with a length of 5 km and a width of 500 m, and at a cost of 6.8. billion Egyptian pounds.

The Cabinet’s media center said that the total production capacity of the triple treatment plant of Al-Mahsama amounted to 1 million m3/day, in addition to implementing 10 sanitation projects in Sinai at a cost of 1.7 billion Egyptian pounds.

A triple treatment plant for Bahr El-Baqar drain is being constructed with a total production capacity of 5.6 million m3/day, making it the largest treatment plant in the world.

Work is also under way on 32 desalination plants in Sinai, which are divided into 21 seawater desalination plants and 11 well-water desalination plants. An integrated sanitation project has also been implemented in Tur Sinai.

The report stated that 70 billion Egyptian pounds was invested in the water sector, and another 70 billion Egyptian pounds is to be invested within the next three years. A total of 453 wells were dug in Sinai at a cost of 4 billion Egyptian pounds, in addition to investment in flood works at a cost of 1.3 billion Egyptian pounds up to 2020.

The report indicated the completion of five industrial zones in Bir Al-Abd, Qantara, East and Central Sinai, Abu Zenimah and Al-Arish, in addition to the establishment of a craft area and a wholesale market of 38.8 feddans and a cement factory with a production capacity of 7 million tons per year in the city of Al-Arish.

A factory for the manufacture and packaging of fish was established, with an area of 25,000 square meters and a production capacity of 2,500 tons per year in East Qantara. A marble industry complex in Al-Jafjafa was established, with a production capacity of 3 million square meters annually.

The report touched on projects that have been completed in the tourism and aviation sectors: Al-Bardawil International Airport has been established, Sharm El-Sheikh Airport was developed, and work is underway to develop El-Arish International Airport. This comes in addition to the implementation of about 98.5 percent of the works of the Sharm El-Sheikh Museum with a total cost of about 815 million Egyptian pounds.