27/07/2018 (Agence Europe) – On Wednesday 26 July, the European Investment Bank (EIB) signed the first finance agreement worth €126 million (out of a total financing support of €172 million) to improve wastewater infrastructure and access to sanitation services in the Fayoum Governorate in Egypt. The project aims at improving sanitation services for up to approximately 940,000 people, and involves the construction of eight new wastewater treatment plants, the expansion of nine existing wastewater treatment plants, the rehabilitation of ten existing plants, the construction of associated sewerage networks, including 139 new pumping stations, for currently unserved rural villages, and the provision of on-site sanitation facilities and evacuation trucks for around 400,000 people. The project will be implemented in two phases during 2018-2025 and will also contribute to the de-pollution of Lake Qarun. (CG)