NEF (Near East Foundation) -- 2007 Annual Report -- Country Report; Egypt

It is just the end of phase one with many more hopefully to come--potentially the largest agricultural development project ever implemented by NEF (Near East Foundation) in Egypt. In June NEF organized a conference to report on our three-year, multi-faceted efforts to improve the lives of residents on reclaimed desert land along the shores of Lake Nasser. The message was that 2,500 small landholding families in the three target villages--Bashaer Al-Kheir, Garf Hussein, Kalabsha--have higher incomes, an improved standard of living, and chances for better health. For a detailed report on the conference see adjacent link to the "Al-Ahram" newspaper article.

How did we do it? By encouraging an ecological approach to agriculture, valued-added production and niche-marketing. Our agro-ecology project introduced an eco-health approach to community development, highlighting the inextricable link between human well-being and the ecosystem in which people live and demonstrating ways to mitigate environmental threats to health and resources.

It was all made possible because of our close cooperation with the local community, the High Dam Lake Authority, which has jurisdiction over the area. and the scientific community. These three years of effort contributed significantly to our growing expertise in innovative and sustainable strategies for communities with delicate ecosystems and changing socio-ecological environments.

ATTRACTIONS & CHALLENGES

One of the largest fresh water reservoirs in the world, Lake Nasser is richly endowed with natural resources providing abundant opportunities for sustainable human and economic development. However, the vicinity is a hyper-arid desert plateau subject to hot summers and mild winters with few days free of sunshine and soils typically low in fertility. Yet, proximity to the reservoir, along with a climate favorable for year-round growing, provides promising agricultural potential.

The Egyptian government has announced plans to settle one million people in the fragile and challenging environment around Lake Nasser; the presence of 60,000 settlers already makes the need for comprehensive intervention urgent. NEF has established a nursery, pilot farm and intensive surveying and advisory program: a desert agriculture extension project that includes farmers and their families in decisions about what, when and how to cultivate, irrigate and harvest their fields. This pragmatic, participatory research is an excellent example of NEF's approach.

Funding for this first phase of work at Lake Nasser came from the Canadian International Development Research Center. We look forward to further cooperation with the IDRC.

EGYPTIAN PHILANTHROPY

In February NEF hosted another conference--"Philanthropy in Egypt: A Study of Local Giving and Its Potential for the Country's Development"-- summarizing results of a three-year investigation with a book by that title, published in both Arabic and English. The study was funded by the Ford Foundation.

The Cairo conference was notable for the important distinction made between simple charity and partnerships for sustainable development which change people's lives for the better. Sponsored by the Egyptian Ministry of Social Solidarity, Vodafone, and the Alkan Group, this ground-breaking forum attracted 600 attendees, including representatives from business, nongovernmental organizations, government ministries, academia, the media and religious communities. We addressed a number of issues relating to the history and present state of Egyptian philanthropy and how people/organizations/businesses should approach philanthropy in the future.

Conference sponsors, Vodafone and the Alkan Group, discussed their own roles promoting corporate social responsibility initiatives, while others emphasized the need for an encouraging legal environment with improved transparency and tax incentives. A newspaper report on the conference, published in "Egypt--Daily News," is available at the adjacent link.

SPEAKING OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

In December, NEF issued our final report on corporate social responsibility (CSR), the result of year-long, comprehensive research and fieldwork that began in November 2005. Our May 2006 interim report had reviewed the private sector role towards environment and natural resource management in this relatively new concept in Egyptian business, as well as identified implementing corporations. Also, we presented methods that could be standardized to encourage cooperative partnerships between government and private industries, the private and development sectors. The report included suggestions for future projects, shifting away from superficial philanthropy for image enhancement to involvement in ongoing community support. Our December final report measured the CSR trend across multinational, large, medium and small enterprises, assessing sustainable impact achieved and areas requiring more attention. We concluded that basic obstacles continue to confront CSR development, including lack of awareness of CSR.

This spring, NEF began working on a sustainability index to rate the CSR performance of companies and facilitate periodic evaluations of such performance over the long run. Developed in collaboration with the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchanges, the index was ready for launch as this fiscal year closed in June and we expect it to help boost the number of companies interested in corporate social responsibility.

A case in point: NEF has worked with the Arab African International Bank to train nurses at Cairo's Abu El-Reesh Hospital. We provided the bank with information on how its money would be spent and how it could evaluate the results. As a result, the bank made an "investment" in improving pediatric hospital care and did not just give money. For more about our work with CSR see the adjacent link for "Business Today Egypt" article.

These are just some of the ways NEF over the past year continued to innovate Egyptian development work and impact the entire region with our technical assistance--research, training, publications, conferences, evaluations, and project management.