Egypt's Minister of Local Development and Environment Manal Awad chaired the first board meeting of the Bioenergy for Sustainable Development Foundation for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, focusing on scaling up biogas initiatives nationwide. The meeting approved the foundation's internal regulations, administrative structure, budget, and upcoming work plan to promote sustainable development and resource efficiency. Awad emphasized expanding biogas technology to generate energy and electricity while producing organic fertiliser, supporting sustainable agriculture, creating jobs, and mitigating waste's environmental impact.
As part of its strategy to bolster the green economy, Egypt is expanding biogas projects to better utilize agricultural and animal waste. Minister Manal Awad chaired the foundation's inaugural board meeting, where participants discussed nationwide scaling of these initiatives. According to a ministry statement, the session approved internal regulations, administrative structure, budget, and a forward-looking work plan, all geared toward sustainable development and improved resource efficiency.
Awad highlighted the significance of broadening biogas technology to produce energy and electricity alongside organic fertiliser. She pointed out that such efforts can aid sustainable agriculture, generate employment, and lessen the environmental effects of waste. The minister advocated for a new biogas unit at the 15 May slaughterhouse in Cairo, building on a successful model in Kafr Shokr, and extending similar units to Upper Egypt and Wadi El-Natrun.
She also emphasized ensuring the longevity of current units via routine maintenance programs, operational monitoring, and thorough feasibility studies before new launches. From June to December 2025, the foundation installed 1,932 biogas units, yielding about 2.1 million cubic metres of gas yearly—equivalent to roughly 70,000 LPG cylinders. These processed nearly 53,000 tonnes of animal waste and produced 84,000 cubic metres of organic fertiliser, benefiting around 7,000 acres of farmland. The projects aided approximately 9,500 individuals, fostered job creation, and helped establish 31 bioenergy start-ups, the ministry reported.