Yasmine Fouad, minister of environment, announced that the program would begin with the Nabq and Ras Mohammed reserves in South Sinai, where restaurants and cafeterias have been set up.

She highlighted the ministry’s efforts to support the local community by enabling them to sell handicrafts and provide food services to visitors at the nature reserves.

Fouad said that 70 percent of the employees at the Wadi El-Gemal Reserve were from the local population.

The number of stations to monitor air pollutants has been increased to 116 nationwide, she said, adding that the ministry publishes a report every three days on air quality and issues alerts if any concentration of pollutants is detetcted in an effort to protect people’s health, especially those with allergies and respiratory issues.

Highlighting “full transparency through the information and data that is published,” Fouad also talked about the government’s nationwide afforestation program, which will see the number of trees reach 2 million next year.

She revealed plans to rehabilitate Egyptian lakes and stop direct sewage flow into them.

The total number of nature reserves in Egypt currently is 31. Natural reserves are estimated to make up more than 15 percent of the country’s total area.

The idea to establish natural reserves stems from Law 102, passed in 1983.