Egypt's Sewilam Begins Japan Visit to Boost Water Cooperation

Egypt's Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Hani Sewilam, began an official visit to Japan on Monday with a tour of the Tone River management system, as Cairo seeks to deepen cooperation with Tokyo on digital water management and infrastructure modernization.

Sewilam's visit follows an invitation from Yoko Kamikawa, the Japanese prime minister's special envoy to the 2026 United Nations Water Conference, and Yasushi Kaneko, Japan's minister responsible for water policy.

During the visit, Sewilam is scheduled to attend the international ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of Japan's Water Day, hold bilateral talks with Kamikawa and senior Japanese officials, witness the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Egypt and Japan, and visit Japanese water facilities and research centres.

The Egyptian minister began the trip by touring the Tone River management system, where he reviewed Japan's use of advanced digital technologies to operate and manage water infrastructure.

Japanese officials briefed Sewilam on the integrated system, which supplies water to the Greater Tokyo area through a network of dams, barrages, canals and flood protection facilities supported by real-time monitoring and operational control systems.

He also examined Japan's approach to integrated water resources management, including water allocation mechanisms, remote monitoring technologies, decision-support systems and early warning tools designed to improve water efficiency and strengthen resilience against floods.

The two sides exchanged views on technical issues related to operating the system, allocating water across different sectors and monitoring the river's environmental conditions.

"The visit provides an opportunity to learn from Japan's distinguished experience in managing and operating water infrastructure and assess how these practices can support the modernization of Egypt's water resources management system under the Second Generation Water System (2.0)," Sewilam said in a statement.

He added that the ministry aims to expand technical cooperation with Japanese institutions managing the Tone River system, particularly in smart operation of water facilities, integrated water resources management, digital transformation and technical capacity building.

Egypt has increasingly promoted digital transformation in water management as part of its Water System 2.0 strategy, which seeks to improve operational efficiency, optimize water allocation and enhance climate resilience amid growing pressure on the country's limited water resources.