Egypt's water supply depends almost entirely on the Nile. The SEKEM initiative helps farmers to switch to biodynamic agriculture and to grow plants that can thrive on limited water.
A single glance at the map is enough to understand the value of water in Egypt: The trapezoidal territory of this North African republic is marked almost entirely in a sandy brown colour—nearly a million square kilometers of desert. A thin green strip stretches from south to north through the arid landscape. There, the Nile, flowing from Sudan, transforms the arid land into blooming landscapes. In the far north, the world’s longest river fans out like a lotus flower—as if relieved, after its long and arduous journey, to have finally reached its destination, the Mediterranean Sea.
Farming in a country like Egypt means using water wisely.
“People have to irrigate every square meter for anything to grow,” says Helmy Abouleish. “What we don’t cultivate turns into desert.”
Even in the Nile River basin, water must be stored and diverted for agricultural use. The area where farming is possible is minuscule—just four percent of the total land area.
“This country is heavily dependent on irrigation.”
Helmy Abouleish is the managing director of SEKEM, a biodynamic agricultural enterprise headquartered on a farm in Sharqiyah, northeast of Cairo. SEKEM was founded by his parents, Ibrahim and Gudrun Abouleish in 1977 with the goal of promoting sustainable development through a holistic approach, meaning that ecology, economy, society, and culture are given equal consideration. SEKEM addresses the looming water crisis through research, entrepreneurship, and a philosophy that places human dignity at its center.
The Nile: A Lifeline – Without It, There Would Be No Agriculture
Since 1994, Egypt has been consuming more water than is available from renewable water sources. The country’s water supply depends almost entirely on the Nile. By far the largest part of the water, nearly 80 percent, is consumed by agriculture. And yet, its yield is not sufficient to feed the Egyptian population. “Given the current conversion of water into biomass, 55 billion cubic meters of Nile water can feed a maximum of 55 million people—and there are 120 million of us,” notes Helmy Abouleish.
Egypt has to import fifty percent of the food it needs.
Even with a low-meat diet—which is the norm for most Egyptians—only half the population can be fed. As a result, the already heavily indebted state has to import fifty percent of the food it needs : wheat from Ukraine, rice from India, soybeans from the United States. With Egypt’s rapidly growing population, demand continues to rise.
At the same time, the volume of food exports from Egypt is growing.
This may sound contradictory, but these exports consist primarily of so-called “cash crops”—that is, high-value products such as fruits and nuts—which are intended for sale abroad rather than to feed the country’s own population .
To this end, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has been developing vast areas of desert into farmland over the past years, claiming that he will “make the desert green.” These projects are primarily financed by loans worth billions and foreign investments, which further exacerbates Egypt’s already high national debt.
There are lots of questions around the sustainability and social justice aspects of these megaprojects .
There are lots of questions around the sustainability and social justice aspects of these megaprojects . They are partly irrigated using limited groundwater reserves, which have been depleting at twice the rate since al-Sisi took power in 2013. In addition, millions of cubic meters of water are being diverted from the Nile and channeled to new large-scale projects in the desert, some of which are in the hands of foreign investors. The water used there seeps away in the desert sand instead of returning to the natural water cycle.
The Important Role of Farmers
Making the desert green was also the dream of SEKEM founder Ibrahim Abouleish. But his approach is completely different, as his son Helmy Abouleish explains.
“Biodynamic farmers use 20 to 40 percent less water. That’s fantastic!”
The 64-year-old is sitting in his office at Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development in Cairo, which was founded by SEKEM in 2009. The university offers degree programs ranging from agriculture to pharmacy to business administration. It also conducts research on the importance of agriculture for the climate and water.
“Today, research shows me that what we’ve been doing for 48 years is the solution to a whole range of the biggest challenges—whether it’s climate change, water, biodiversity, or the health of people and the planet. As a biodynamic farmer, you address all of these issues.”
Abouleish speaks German with an Austrian accent. He was born and raised in Graz before moving to Cairo at the age of 16. From the very beginning, he helped out on his father’s farm and quickly realized that he wanted to build a future there.
Today, while he attends international conferences as a business graduate and managing director of SEKEM, Helmy Abouleish still describes himself as a “simple farmer from Sharqiyah.” In his view, the role of farmers is underestimated all over the world.
“In Egypt, as well as in Germany or Austria, people use the word ‘farmer’ as a synonym for a country bumpkin. They don’t realize that it is the farmer who keeps our food supply, health, and environment running.”
But Egyptian farmers are in crisis. Seven million farmers share roughly three million hectares of land.
“Just under half a hectare per farmer—how are they supposed to feed their families?” asks Abouleish.
“Naturally, the farmer thinks the solution is a few bags of chemical fertilizer, pesticides, and glyphosate.”
Despite using these environmentally harmful substances, most continue to live below the poverty line, “and all their children want is to get out of there. They’d rather go to a slum in the city than stay in the countryside.”
A New Approach: Nature-Based Farming That Focuses on the Balance Between the Environment, People and Animals
To avoid this deadend, SEKEM supports Egyptian farmers in converting their farms to biodynamic agriculture. In Germany, biodynamic farming is best known under the Demeter label. It is often criticized for being based on ideas that are sometimes esoteric and unscientific. Nevertheless, the principle is valued by many because it adheres to strict guidelines for biologically sustainable agriculture. Animal welfare, biodiversity, and the ban on pesticides are central to this approach. In SEKEM’s practice, biodynamics primarily means agriculture that is close to nature and focuses on the balance between the well-being of the environment, people, and animals.
This also has a positive impact on water use: “If I use water responsibly and not just to make money, then I can look for varieties that need less water to produce just as much biomass,” says Helmy Abouleish. The prickly pear, a sweet-and-sour fruit, and the moringa tree, whose leaves are processed into dietary supplements, are miracle plants that can be grown in the desert, says Abouleish. They require virtually no irrigation. In addition to using types like these, SEKEM treats 100 percent of the water used in all its facilities for reuse.
Demeter products are known to be quite pricey. For most people in Egypt, they would be unaffordable, especially with the ongoing economic crisis. But SEKEM doesn’t want to produce just for the premium market; it wants to serve “ordinary” Egyptians who shop at the wholesale market, says Abouleish. They try to achieve this through CO2 certificates. These certificates each represent one ton of CO2. Anyone who, like biodynamic farmers, reduces or avoids emissions can receive certificates and sell them to companies that emit particularly high levels of CO2 and are obliged to buy those certificates to balance their carbon footprint.
“This approach allows us to help 100 farmers switch to biodynamic farming every day,” Helmy Abouleish says proudly. Just recently, SEKEM celebrated 40,000 farmers joining the community over the past three years. Now they aim to reach the 250,000 mark. There are plenty of candidates, says Abouleish. The farmers who cooperate with them earn more than before and, on top of that, gain access to banking services as well as pension and health insurance.
Better Living Conditions for Farmers
Improving the living conditions of farmers and their families is a central element of SEKEM’s holistic approach.
This includes applying Fairtrade principles to both its own production and procurement, as well as operating a literacy school, support programs for women, and a health center for all employees and students.
Above all, SEKEM is about helping people realize their full potential, says Helmy Abouleish.
“We use an image from the Quran that speaks of the light of Allah within each of us. We want to bring that light to shine.”
Egypt is already one of the countries most severely affected by the impacts of the climate crisis. Like Tunisia, it is among the 25 countries worldwide whose water supply is under extreme pressure. Helmy Abouleish believes that, in light of this threat, a transformation in agriculture is inevitable . For him, the only question is whether it will come about through reason or be forced by crises and disasters.
We are trying to shape transformation out of a sense of understanding",
he emphasizes, quoting the Persian poet Rumi:
“The path appears as you walk it.”