Cairo Fisher Earns More From Plastic Than Fish
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- Mohammed Ahmed Sayed (60) has fished the Nile for 45 years from al-Qarsaya island, but his daily catch has collapsed from 25kg of fish in winter to 4-5kg, while plastic collection now pays 33 Egyptian pounds per kilogram — yielding up to 3,000 pounds monthly in winter peaks.
- VeryNile, launched in 2018 by Egyptian social enterprise Bassita, has collected more than 454 tonnes of plastic from the river, paying fishers above-market rates that have lifted plastic prices from 8 pounds/kg in 2018 to 33 pounds/kg today, and distributing 150 boats free of charge across three locations including Sayed's birthplace in Assiut.
- Approximately 180 fishers on al-Qarsaya have pivoted from traditional fishing to waste collection, with all participants interviewed by the Guardian now working with VeryNile rather than relying on fishing.
- Sayed used plastic-collection income to marry off his three children and build a café on the island for his eldest son, who found no other work available — his wife died on the island three years ago, which lacks adequate healthcare.
- VeryNile employs 25 island women in kitchen, sorting, and product-design roles, established al-Qarsaya's emergency clinic, and runs farmer training while buying produce for the initiative's kitchen that serves island visitors.
- Al-Qarsaya island, home to 200 families, sits in central Cairo (population 22 million) yet remains accessible only by ferry or fishing boat — most of the plastic collected comes from party boats operating on the Nile and is processed at a recycling factory in 6th of October City.
Why it matters: Roughly 180 Nile fishers have abandoned their traditional livelihood for garbage collection, with one fisher earning more monthly from plastic in winter peaks than from fish he can no longer catch — a reversal that underscores how river pollution has hollowed out a 45-year career and forced a whole island community to staff Cairo's recycling economy with boats and labor that once fed the capital.
