Egyptian - Italian Environmental Cooperation Program

Legal and Institutional Framework Project 

The “Legal and Institutional Framework Project (LIFP)” is a component of Phase II of the Egyptian-Italian Environmental Cooperation Program (EIECP). The program aims at contributing “to the protection of Egypt’s natural and cultural resources”. The Phase II of EIECP will have a life span of three years, starting from the 1^st June 2004.

The general objective of the Legal and Institutional Framework Project is addressing weaknesses and inconsistencies of some specific areas of the environmental legislation and its implementation, and to strengthen the Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs / Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency’s capability to cope with legal environmental issues, its institutional role with respect to the other public institutions, and therefore its capability to impose environmental considerations as cross-sector issues. 

The Project pursues the following specific objectives, related to the priority thematic areas identified during the preparation of both the Program and the Project:

The expected outputs are the followings:

Solid Waste Management

1. New solid waste management regime (or parts of it) drafted.

2. Inconsistencies, overlapping and contradictions between existing SWM legislation identified and proposed for elimination.  

3. Internationally accepted environmental standards for the construction and operation of solid waste   management facilities compiled and prepared. 

4. Quality and environmental standards to be followed by solid waste management private entities established (e.g. standards to be specified in the concession from the public authority to the private entity in order to ensure that the service is managed properly).

5. Roles and responsibilities of the entities involved in solid waste management (EEAA, decentralized offices, NGOs, private sector), with regard to the different phases of policy, planning, regulation, monitoring  and enforcement with specific attention to the distinction between the entities responsible for operations and the entities responsible for regulation and control, well defined.

6. Incentive measures for waste reduction, recycling and composting proposed.

Protected Areas

1. A report assessing the state of the art of compliance with Law n. 102 of 1983 in selected protected areas prepared.

2. Guidelines for the correct implementation of Laws, Executive Regulations and Decrees directly or indirectly relevant to protected areas elaborated.

3. Reform of existing licensing system for activities within protected areas and an adapted system proposed.

4. Rules providing for delimitation of strictly protected zones, with respect to areas where activities compatible with the environment can be allowed, elaborated.

5. Rules disciplining the exercise of allowed activities within protected areas, including the use of natural resources, elaborated.

6. A report clarifying the relationship between central and local EEAA offices (with a view to decentralizing   responsibilities, also with respect to the management of local funds coming from entrance fees and fines), and between EEAA and other Ministries and organizations (especially with reference to licenses and controls) prepared.

Note  All the above results will be obtained with respect to the selected protected areas (see above Objectives).  These would include Wadi El Rayan and at least another protected area falling under EIECP.  The findings and outputs will then be generalized to the best possible extent to the Egyptian protected area network.

Marine Environment

1. International conventions on marine environment of interest for Egypt, distinguishing among those that  have already been signed or ratified, and those, whose adoption is suggested, collected.

2. Guidelines for appropriate implementation of the International Conventions, to which Egypt is party, drafted.

3. Legislative and regulatory means for implementation of international conventions concerning marine environment determined.

4. Real cases of environmental damages affecting the marine environment addressed and settled (to the possible   extent, depending on judicial system times) through application of international conventions.

Capacity Building 

1. EEAA Legal Affairs Department legislative and regulatory role strengthened.

2. Legal Affairs Department negotiation skills, especially concerning compensation for environmental damages, namely for the marine environment, enhanced.

3. Training programs prepared and implemented for EEAA relevant departments, judicial officers, prosecutors,  judges, governorates’ officers. This will focus on

   1. solid waste management, 

   2. protected areas, and

   3. marine environment.

The targets will be achieved through implementation of the activities as described in the Project document. 

Download full Project document

Legal Training Course for Specialized Environmental Judges

“Activation of the Implementation of the Egyptian Environmental Legislation”

Cairo, 10^th - 12^th October 2009

The Legal and Institutional Framework Project (LIFP) organized a three days Training Course for environmental judges which took place in the premises of Cairo House from the 10th to the 12th of October 2009. It concerned the legal aspects of the environmental legislation and aimed at building specific capacities related to the implementation of the Egyptian environmental legislation, in particular Law No. 4 of 1994 as amended in 2009.

The Training Course was the last one of a turn of events organized by the LIFP Project in the sector of Legal Capacity Building: during its lifespan, more than 15 training courses were held and quite thousand environmental judges and prosecutors were trained. The Training Course on subject was attended by more than 40 Egyptian environmental judges and it was focused on several environmental topics from both the international and the national perspectives.

The issues addressed varied from the legal regimes deriving from international environmental conventions (i.e. the Basel Convention and the Kyoto Protocol) to the main features of the Environmental Law No. 4 of 1994, the legal aspects of the management of hazardous waste, the procedures of the environmental impact system, the rules on environmental quality and air pollution and the legal regime of protected areas.

The final ceremonial session of the Training Course was attended by the Director of Development Cooperation Office of the Italian Embassy Dr. Ginevra Letizia, the National Manager of LIFP Gen. Ahmed El Anwer, the International Co-manager and Senior Technical Advisor of LIFP Prof. Sergio Marchisio, the UNDP Officer Mrs. Amany Nakhla, the PCU Coordinator Dr. Luca Montaccini and other members of the PMU of LIFP. It reaffirmed the importance of the activities of Capacity Building within the LIFP Project and of the common purposes and perspectives of the bilateral cooperation program between Italy and Egypt.

The Egyptian Ministers for Environmental Affairs, Maged George, and of Justice, Mamdouh Moheiddin Marei, underlined on several occasions the importance of LIFP Project in the field of environmental protection and legal capacity building. Minister George reaffirmed its deep appraisal for LIFP during the bilateral meeting with the Italian Minister for the Environment, Stefania Prestigiacomo, held in 2009 during the G8 Environment Summit of Siracusa.