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President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi directed officials on Tuesday to speed up the completion of remaining projects under the first phase of the presidential Haya Karima initiative, remove all obstacles, and ensure sufficient funding to deliver services to citizens as quickly as possible, while stepping up preparations for the launch of the initiative’s second phase.

The instructions came during a meeting attended by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and a group of ministers and senior officials, including those responsible for planning, local development, social solidarity, housing, military production, and the Armed Forces’ engineering and financial authorities.

According to presidential spokesperson Ambassador Mohamed El-Shennawy, the meeting reviewed the latest developments in implementing the first phase of the national project to develop villages in the Egyptian countryside, describing it as an unprecedented model in economic and urban development.

The first phase is being implemented across 20 governorates, 52 districts, 333 local units, and 1,477 villages, benefiting around 20 million citizens through approximately 27,332 projects. Officials said the average implementation rate for these projects has reached about 90 percent.

The meeting also examined progress on utilities and infrastructure, including sanitation, drinking water, energy, telecommunications networks, transport and road projects, security, and community services.

Officials discussed the current execution status and ways to overcome challenges to ensure projects are completed on schedule.

Preparations for the second phase of the initiative were also reviewed. This phase will include projects in sanitation and water, natural gas, telecommunications and fibre-optic networks, healthcare facilities, and ambulance units under the comprehensive health insurance system, as well as educational institutions.

The second phase will be implemented across 20 governorates and 204 local units, with around 14,500 projects, some of which have already begun in 245 villages.

President El-Sisi stressed the need for thorough and well-planned preparation for the second phase, calling for the highest standards of performance and implementation in line with the latest benchmarks.

Launched in 2019, the presidential Haya Karima initiative is one of Egypt’s largest national development projects, aiming to improve living conditions across rural areas.

Phase one, with investments estimated at around EGP 350 billion, delivered a major expansion in basic services across targeted villages. Access to drinking water reached full coverage, while sanitation services rose from about 20 percent to nearly 90 percent.

The phase included establishing 261 water plants and 22 wastewater treatment plants, as well as completing around 455,000 household water connections.

The first phase also saw the delivery of 685 health units and 365 ambulance stations, the construction of around 15,000 classrooms, and the upgrading of 925 youth centers.

In parallel, about 596,000 citizens were enrolled in literacy programs as part of broader efforts to improve human development indicators in rural areas.

Source: Al Ahram Online