CAIRO — Sharm el-Sheikh, a resort city on the Red Sea coast, will be transformed into a sustainable green city before it hosts the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) in November, with the help of a $7 million grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

On June 6, Egyptian officials signed the Sharm Green City Project agreement in a ceremony attended by Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad and South Sinai Gov. Khaled Fouda. Egypt's Environment Affairs Agency will implement the GEF-funded project in partnership with the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

By utilizing low-carbon technologies, proper waste management practices and environmental protection, Sharm el-Sheikh will become an integrated, environmentally sustainable tourist destination, said the minister of the environment in a statement issued June 6.

Fouad explained that Sharm el-Sheikh has implemented eco-friendly initiatives over the past few months, including switching to electric for its transportation network and developing eco-friendly hotels. Also, under the ministry's sustainable practices initiative, hotel employees were trained in environmental policies, restaurants and cafeterias were incorporated with sustainability standards, and dive centers that abided by environmental practices were rewarded with the Green Star.