Environment Min. discusses with UN the establishment of a fund to protect coral reefs

CAIRO – 18 August 2026: Minister of Local Development and Environment Dr. Manal Awad, held a meeting Tuesday with Guillaume Deeb, Deputy Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), to discuss the mechanisms for establishing the Egyptian Fund for the Protection of Coral Reefs.

The meeting was attended by Eng. Sherif Abdel Rahim, Head of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency; Hoda El-Shawadfy, Assistant Minister for Ecotourism; Dr. Ahmed Ghallab, Director General of the Red Sea Reserves; Ms. Soha Taher, Head of the Central Department for International Cooperation; Amani Nakhla, UNDP Representative; Yomna Emad, Project Manager of the Egyptian Red Sea Initiative; and several representatives from the project and the program.

Establishment of the Egyptian Fund for the Protection of Coral Reefs

Dr. Manal Awad discussed scenarios for establishing the Coral Reef Conservation Fund as one of the most important strategic outcomes of the Red Sea Coral Reef Initiative (ERSI).

The fund would serve as a platform for financing coral reef protection and promoting sustainability, aiming to protect this environmental asset and enable sustainable transformation by financing the positive expansion and restoration of coral reefs.

The Minister of Local Development and Environment affirmed that coral reefs are not only of environmental value but also a cornerstone of tourism, employment opportunities, and economic activities linked to the Red Sea.

She added that protecting them means protecting local communities and enhancing their resilience to environmental and climatic challenges. She noted that the establishment of the “Egyptian Coral Reef Fund” will help attract long-term investments to support conservation and sustainable tourism efforts, reflecting a reliance on sustainable financing as a tool to ensure the continuity of marine environment conservation programs.

Coral reefs are an environmental asset and a cornerstone of tourism, job creation, and economic development.

Dr. Manal Awad listened to a presentation from representatives of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on the fund’s objectives.

These include expanding the responsibility for protection by implementing national biodiversity commitments, increasing corporate social responsibility, bridging the funding gap, and diversifying funding sources by building a sustainable financing system.

This system aims to ensure that protection encompasses economic activities related to protected areas, particularly coral reefs, thereby stimulating development and managing the relationship between resource protection and development.

The fund supports protection, guidance, and private sector incentives, market transformation, and the provision of non-traditional financing tools that are coral reef-friendly and generate economic returns according to international standards.