Context
The Sekem Association was founded in 1977 in Cairo with the idea of launching a sustainable development initiative to serve the local community. The founder of the association, Dr Ibrahim Abouleish, wanted to create a place of human development where all economic and social activities would be carried out in accordance with ecological and ethical principles.
The association was founded in 1977 by Dr Ibrahim Abouleish (1937 - 2017) - a graduate in chemical engineering from the Technical University of Graz, Austria (1956 - 1961), and in medical sciences from the University of Graz, Austria, in 1969. Based on the idea of "holistic sustainable development", the founder and his family aim to develop a self-sufficient and sustainable community in the desert.
Ibrahim Abouleish founded Sekem on 70 hectares of desert north-east of the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
Project
In 1983, Sekem launched its first food brand, iSiS Organic. The brand introduced organic food to the Egyptian food market. At the same time, Sekem also launched its first brand of medicinal herbs, sold in the local food market under the brand name Sekem Herbs.
In the 1990s, Sekem became involved in various projects, including cultural and social ones, and began exporting organic fruit and vegetables to Europe in collaboration with EOSTA and Organic Farm Foods. Sekem also supported the establishment of the Centre for Organic Agriculture in Egypt (COAE) as an independent certification body, working in accordance with the Demeter guidelines and later the European Regulation on Organic Agriculture.
Sekem's iSiS brand is gradually beginning to produce organic food, alongside the many programmes the association runs in parallel, such as the construction of a Vocational Training Centre (VTC), the Sekem Development Foundation, a literacy programme for disadvantaged children, and so on.
The association main project is the development of biodynamic agriculture, a method of organic farming that applies a holistic understanding of life's processes. The basis of biodynamic farming is to maintain the balance between flora and fauna and not to disturb the life cycle.
The team focuses on rehabilitating desert lands in the Egyptian desert, as Egyptian agriculture is severely challenged by increasing water scarcity and the effects of climate change. This includes eliminating the use of pesticides to improve soil health and re-greening cultivated land.
Sekem is involved from production to distribution, from "the desert to the supermarket", by processing the food grown. It owns several companies that process and certify the products from the plots: ISIS Organic, Sekem Health, ATOS Pharma, Nature Tex, Lotus, etc.
Results
Over the years, Sekem's biodynamic farming has been awarded 7 certificates for the quality of its produce:
- Certificat SEKEM Group Fairtrade 26849
- Certificat SEKEM Group Fairtrade 2577
- Certificat SEKEM Group Fairtrade 36610
- SEKEM Holding ISO-9001.15
- SEKEM Holding ISO-14001.15
- ISO-22000.2018
- ISO-45001.18
Today, Sekem employs nearly 2,000 people on three biodynamic farms.
For whom ?
The project targets the whole of civil society in Cairo. Sekem's projects and initiatives are designed to involve all stakeholders in society, through organic farming, healthy and sustainable food, health through medicinal herbs, education, women's entrepreneurship, etc.
With whom ?
The association has a number of partners, including distributors, to ensure the sale of biodynamic products. Sekem also works with other regional (Mediterranean) and international institutions to expand its vision:
- Promotion of Knowledge for Sustainable Agriculture in North Africa (KH NA): funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
- Sustainable Textile Action for the Networking and Development of Circular Economy Enterprises in the Mediterranean: Stand Up project funded by the EU under the ENI CBC Med programme.
- The development of incubators for innovation and technology transfer in the Mediterranean region: the INTECMED project co-funded by the European Union.
This initiative sheet was written by Nadja Camille, LF mission leader in March 2023.
Last modification : 21 Dec 2023.
Sekem
The Sekem Association was founded in 1977 in Cairo with the idea of launching a sustainable development initiative to serve the local community. The founder of the association, Dr Ibrahim Abouleish, wanted to create a place of human development where all economic and social activities would be carried out in accordance with ecological and ethical principles.