BY HATEM Y. EZZ ELDIN Early in 2004, Arab media reported a plan to build a $4billion causeway linking Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The initial plan was to link Tabuk to the Red Sea resort of Sharm Al-Sheikh on the Sinai Peninsula and to pass through Tiran Island at the entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba. The technical studies for implementation had been completed, but for unknown reasons everything stopped suddenly, paving the way for conspiracy theories and rumors of external pressure on the Egyptian government to shelve the project. The stoppage disappointed people of both countries. Fortunately, following the January 2011 uprising that toppled the Mubarak regime, the causeway project came back into focus. The two governments are currently reexamining the process in order to work out details. The planned 50-kilometer causeway is expected to facilitate economic activity between Saudi Arabia and Egypt and to help Egypt revive its troubled economy. According to recent assessments, the new causeway will help increase in two years bilateral trade by more than 300 percent to around $31 billion annually. It will facilitate the flow of goods between the two countries and will attract more Saudi visitors to Egypt, especially to the North Sinai governorate. Some three million travelers cross the Red Sea between Saudi Arabia and Egypt every year for various reasons. That figure is expected to grow almost threefold when the causeway lowers the cost of travel between the two countries. Egypt is a popular travel destination for many Saudis. Many Egyptians, on the other hand, wish to find a cheaper way to visit Saudi Arabia, with about 70,000 Egyptians traveling to Saudi Arabia every year for pilgrimage to Makkah. In addition, around two million Egyptians work in Saudi Arabia. While Egypt tries to meet the demands of its people in the aftermath of revolt, the Egyptian government wants the project to be revived to firm up the ties between the two countries and to generate more economic benefits. However, there are issues to be clarified, especially on environmental concerns. I am not sure if technical modifications made recently by Egyptian and Saudi officials included such concerns. Geologists are worried that the process of building the causeway will destroy marine resources in the region. I am as worried as they are. If the environmental concerns are addressed, I think it will be beneficial to go ahead with the project. There are enough funds and labor to build the project. What are needed are perseverance and trust in our capability to overcome the environmental challenges and other concerns to turn the dormant project into reality. (Hatem Y. Ezz Eldin is a political researcher based in Jeddah. He can be reached at [email protected]) __
