Chamber of Diving and Watersports - Egypt

What Chamber of Diving and Watersports - Egypt does

CDWS is a government-affiliated regulatory chamber founded in 2007 by Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities to license, certify, and oversee the diving and water sports industry along the Red Sea and South Sinai coasts. It is the sole authorized body for issuing operating licenses, professional certifications, and quality assurance for diving centers, safari boats, water sports operators, and related facilities. The chamber manages a membership base of 309 diving centers, 155 safari boats, 191 water sports centers, 2 filling stations, 8 maintenance/test stations, and 12 underwater photography companies across 12 destinations including Sharm El Sheikh, Hurghada, Dahab, Marsa Alam, and Hamata. Its mandate includes enforcing EN 14467 / ISO 24803 and ISO 13289 standards, implementing the Green Fins environmental program, and publishing a public blacklist of non-compliant operators shut down by the Ministry.

Its service portfolio combines regulatory functions with digital infrastructure: a membership portal at members.cdws.travel for account management and card requests, a Trip Notification Application at trips.cdws.travel for electronic reporting of safari boat, yacht, submarine, and beach activity trips, an industry job board, an annual Blue Magazine publication, and a structured training curriculum covering environmental awareness, shark behavior, and technical management. The chamber runs audits, spot checks, and investigations on member facilities and processes tourism police permits for South Sinai groups. Technology partners include Innovix Solutions for web platform development, while strategic partners include the European Underwater Federation, HEPCA, Eco Egypt Experiences, and the Green Fins network.

Revenue is generated through annual membership subscriptions from operator facilities, professional CDWS cards priced at 125 EGP/year per individual, paid training courses ranging from 300 EGP (one-day environmental awareness) to 10,000 EGP (four-day technical manager course), tourism police permit processing fees, and advertising revenue from Blue Magazine. The go-to-market is fundamentally B2B and mandatory: diving centers, safari boats, and water sports operators cannot legally operate in Egypt without active CDWS membership and accredited professional cards for their staff.

Name

Chamber of Diving and Watersports - Egypt

Legal name

Chamber of Diving and Watersports

Website

https://cdws.travel

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CDWS is a government-affiliated regulatory chamber founded in 2007 by Egypt's Ministry of Tourism to license, certify, and oversee the diving and water sports industry across the Red Sea and South Sinai, serving ~655 member operators and individual professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Diving and Watersports Industry Regulation

NAICS

Coastal and Great Lakes Passenger Transportation (483114), Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation (487), Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (48721)

SIC

Water Transportation (4400), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAAALAB

Water & Marine Guiding Services (Kayak, Canoe, Raft, SUP, Sailing)

Travel & Hospitality/Adventure, Amusement Parks & Ecotourism/Adventure & Ecotourism Equipment Rental & Guiding Services

SECONDARYTHAEAGAH

Leisure Passenger Shipping Charters (Ferry/Excursion Vessels)

Travel & Hospitality/Cruises & Maritime Leisure Travel/Ferries & Leisure Passenger Shipping

SECONDARYCRAMAIAF

Diving & Snorkeling Retail (Scuba Gear)

Consumer Products & Retail/Sporting Goods & Outdoor Retail/Water Sports & Marine Recreation Retail

Keywords

• Diving industry regulation
• Watersports accreditation services
• Professional dive certification
• Marine environmental compliance
• Underwater tourism safety

Headquarters

HQ city

Hurghada

HQ country

Egypt

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees for diving centers, safari boats, water sports centers, filling stations, test stations, and underwater photography companies. Members must maintain active membership to operate legally.
2. CDWS Professional Cards: Issuance and annual renewal of CDWS cards for professionals (dive guides, instructors, skippers, boat crew). Annual card fee is 125 EGP per card.
3. Training Courses: Revenue from training courses including Technical Manager courses, Environmental Awareness courses, and Shark Awareness courses. Fees range from 300-10,000 EGP depending on course duration and type.
4. Tourism Police Permits: Processing fees for tourism police permits to accompany and secure touristic groups in South Sinai.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CDWS is Egypt's official regulatory and trade body for the diving and water sports industry, founded by the Ministry of Tourism in 2007. It accredits and certifies diving centers, safari boats, and water sports centers, issues CDWS professional cards to dive guides and instructors, runs mandatory training and environmental awareness programs, processes tourism police permits, and operates the Trip Notification Application for regulatory trip reporting across Egypt's Red Sea and South Sinai coastal destinations.

Product overview

The Chamber of Diving and Watersports - Egypt (CDWS) is a regulatory and membership organization founded by Egypt's Ministry of Tourism in 2007, not a traditional product company. Its offerings consist of membership directories for diving centers (309 members), safari boats (155 members), water sports centers (191 members), filling stations (2 members), maintenance stations (8 members), and underwater photography companies (12 members). Key services include membership certification and card issuance, quality assurance audits, environmental programs (Green Fins Egypt, environmental awareness training), the Trip Notification Application (Beach - Boat) for electronic trip reporting, training courses for environmental awareness, shark behavior, and technical manager certification, a job board for industry professionals, tourism police permits, and event requirements management. The organization also publishes Blue Magazine and maintains a blacklist of non-compliant diving companies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CDWS Membership Services Annual membership accreditation and associated online services including card issuance, exam administration for first-time applicants, equivalent certificates for foreigners, practical exams for snorkeling, temporary cards for foreign professionals, account activation, and online payments. Available to diving centers, safari boats, water sports centers, and individual professionals who must hold CDWS membership to operate legally in Egypt.
• Quality Assurance Services Quality assurance services for member facilities including audit requests, investigations, spot checks, and technical support to verify ongoing compliance with CDWS standards. Targeted at accredited diving centers, safari boats, and water sports operators in the Red Sea and South Sinai.
• Green Fins Egypt Environmental stewardship program providing member diving centers, safari boats, and water sports operators with Green Fins-adapted guidelines, code of conduct materials, environmental violation reporting tools, and QR-coded posters for tourist reporting. Designed for Egypt-based marine tourism operators seeking compliance with Red Sea coral reef protection standards.
• Trip Notification Application (Beach - Boat) Digital regulatory platform used by accredited member facilities to submit electronic trip notifications covering safari boats, daily yachts, diving, snorkeling, submarine, glass-bottom boats, and beach-based water activities. Includes crew management and professional selection. Used by member operators in the Red Sea and South Sinai to comply with trip reporting obligations.
• Tourism Police Permits CDWS-mediated service that issues tourism police permits required to accompany and secure touristic groups in South Sinai for diving activities. Required of accredited diving operators conducting group excursions in the South Sinai governorate.
• Environmental Awareness Training Course for Diving and Water Sports Mandatory 1-day (4-hour) environmental awareness training priced at 1,200 EGP per facility. Required for all employees of diving centers, daily yachts, and water sports centers operating in the South Sinai and Red Sea governorates.
• Environmental Awareness Training Course for Safari Boat Crew Mandatory 1-day (4-hour) environmental awareness training priced at 300 EGP per person. Required for all safari boat crew members including captain, sailors, mechanics, cooks, and salon service staff.
• Shark Behavior Environmental Awareness Course (Arabic) 1-day (4-hour) shark behavior environmental awareness training delivered in Arabic, priced at 700 EGP per participant. Covers diving with sharks, safety practices, and emergency response procedures for industry professionals.
• Shark Behavior Environmental Awareness Course (English) 1-day (4-hour) shark behavior environmental awareness training delivered in English, priced at 700 EGP per participant. Covers diving with sharks, safety practices, and emergency response procedures for industry professionals.
• Technical Manager Training for Recreational Diving Four-day training and certification course priced at 10,000 EGP for technical managers of diving centers and safari boats operating in the Red Sea and South Sinai governorates. Includes exam and certification.
• Technical Manager Training for Snorkeling Service Providers Four-day training course priced at 5,000 EGP for technical managers of water sports centers offering snorkeling services in the Red Sea and South Sinai governorates. Targeted at snorkel guides and instructors.
• CDWS Job Board Online job board listing diving and water sports industry positions in Egypt, including dive guide, snorkel guide, front office, skipper, and captain roles. Accessible to members and individual job seekers.
• CDWS Professional Cards Annual professional certification cards priced at 125 EGP per card, issued to dive guides, instructors, skippers, boat crew, and other diving and water sports professionals to verify qualifications and authorize legal employment in Egypt.
• Black List of Illegal Diving Operators Public database maintained by CDWS listing diving companies and websites that are not operating legally or have been shut down by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. Used by tourists and operators to verify legitimacy.
• Diving and Water Sports Events Requirements Regulatory guidelines and requirements service for organizers of diving and water sports events and activities in Egypt. Targeted at event organizers and member facilities planning regulated marine activities.

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Eco Egypt ExperiencescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 June 2021Collaboration with Eco Egypt Experiences' marine conservation campaign. CDWS made available environmental violation reporting posters with QR codes through the Green Fins Egypt initiative.
• Green FinscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCDWS has adapted Green Fins environmental standards to protect Egypt's coral reefs. The chamber distributes Green Fins materials including code of conduct guidelines, environmental briefing guidelines, and environmental violation reporting systems to member facilities.
• European Underwater FederationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCDWS operates in accordance with European Underwater Federation standards for recreational diving providers (EN 14467 / ISO 24803) and conduct of snorkeling excursions (ISO 13289).
• Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Association (HEPCA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenue provider for shark awareness and environmental training courses in Hurghada. Located at the New Marina area, Hurghada, Red Sea.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Market position

Strengths4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chamber-of-diving-and-watersports---egypt

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Chamber of Diving and Watersports - Egypt