News from the Field

Alexandria: The citadel of one of the ancient world's most important cities.

It was once the very center of the world.

When the famed warrior Alexander the Great founded the city which would bear his name in 331 BC, it quickly became the major port between Europe and the Nile Valley and then between Europe and Arabia and the Far East.

One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the pharos or lighthouse, was built at Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast which would serve as Egypt’s capital for 1,000 years.

For a time it was not only the world’s most important city, but also it’s largest, housing, among other things, the known world’s largest library and also the largest Jewish community on earth.

But the following centuries were unkind to Alexandria which, although it retained a seedy dignity, lost most of its former glory.

In recent years, however, Alexandria has been undergoing a renaissance with links to natural gas and oil pipelines, agricultural and industrial expansion. Recent archaeological discoveries including new connections with one of the world’s best known monarchs, Cleopatra, have been a major boost for regional tourism.

Trainees receiving the trainings in NARITA International Airport.

Through its official development assistance (ODA), Japan has been helping in Alexandria’s resurgence, in particular by providing various types of cooperation – financial aid, technical assistance and training--for the nearby Borg El Arab International Airport which will serve as a major transportation hub for the country’s Mediterranean and Nile Delta regions when it opens in the summer.

Major Yen Loan

In 2005, Japan provided a Yen5.7 billion loan for the modernization of the Airport by constructing a passenger and freight terminal and related facilities.

Latterly, JICA has been helping to strengthen airport personnel expertise with a series of training courses in Japan for Borg El Arab International Airport officials in such areas as airport administration, operations and maintenance, management and staff training, marketing and undertaking preparations for the official opening of the extended Alexandria facilities.

Egyptian officials have been undergoing regular training exercises at Japan’s major NARITA International Airport near Tokyo. Two private Japanese companies regularly send experts to Borg El Arab International Airport itself to continue the training.

Old Terminal of Borg El Arab International Airport.

Where once Alexandria set the standards for travel and transport in the ancient world, the Egyptian personnel have been impressed with the operations and facilities of one of today’s major global transportation hubs.

“Narita is very kind for passengers,” Hani Abdel Hamid Ramzi Ibrahim Eldeeb, Airport Deputy Manager of the Borg El Arab International Airport said during a recent visit. “There is great service and security and signposting is very easy to understand. I can imagine that most passengers are satisfied with their experiences here and will visit again.”


The Egyptians hope to offer the same level of service when their airport opens to more than one million passengers annually in the near future.

JICA and the two private Japanese companies will continue to offer support for one year after the formal opening of Borg el Arab airport.