Photo taken on March 18, 2019 shows the Nile floating hospital cruise ship in Qena, Egypt. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

QENA, Egypt, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Romany Sayed, a 35-year-old taxi driver from Upper Egypt's Qena Province, has spent large amounts of money on the treatment of his four-year-old sick daughter Jillian, but with no tangible results.

Jillian, who suffers from nerves and hearing problems, is finally receiving free treatment at Egypt's first ever Nile floating hospital cruise ship, a solidarity project that aims at providing medical treatment to children and mothers in Upper Egypt.

In early March, Rotary Egypt, a branch of the International Rotary Club, launched the giant medical ship on a 90-day journey on the Nile River to sail to Egypt's different cities and provinces between Aswan and Cairo.

The ship, the first of its kind in the Middle East, has been transformed into a travelling hospital equipped with clinics, laboratories and a pharmacy.

The project, which targets the poorest areas of Upper and Lower Egypt, has also seen massive collaboration from different governmental and non-governmental institutions in Egypt, including the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Social Solidarity and a big number of nongovernmental organizations and companies.

"My daughter has been suffering since she was born," Sayed told Xinhua as one of the doctors at the floating hospital checked his child. "I have spent money and efforts to treat her, but nothing has worked out."

After visiting large numbers of physicians in various Egyptian cities, including the capital Cairo, Sayed learnt from his neighbors that the floating hospital will visit his city, Qena, to offer free treatment for children in need.

"I did not think twice after I knew it provides services for free," Sayed said, adding his income is not enough to afford treatment of his daughter.

"I spent huge sums of money in treating her, but I cannot afford this anymore," he said sadly.

Nevine Nakhla, a representative of Rotary Egypt on the floating hospital, said her organization, which has 103 clubs in the North African country, launched this project to mark the 90th anniversary of Rotary's presence in Egypt.

Doctors, nurses, specialists, and pharmacists are all working voluntarily "to make this dream come true," she added.

"The hospital has 20 clinics covering almost all majors," Nakhla told Xinhua, adding the hospital provides medical screenings and medicines for free.

She pointed out that the ship will stay for one week in each province, noting the hospital aims to treat 1,000 children each day.

"In Aswan, our volunteer doctors diagnosed and treated more than 11,000 children in one week," she revealed, adding children came from various areas in Aswan, Kom Ombo and Esna as well as the Nubian villages nearby.

Nakhla also said partners of Rotary Egypt, including health ministry, will provide the needed medicines, glasses, hearing aids, wheelchairs and artificial limbs for children.

"University hospitals of each province will also do surgeries for children for free," Nakhla proudly said. "This is the best example of solidarity among Egyptians."

According to her, Rotary plans to launch this project once every year in order to help people in remote and poor areas receive free medical care.

At the hearing clinic, the doctor Waleed Mohammed was busy screening children, using high-tech medical equipment.

"We receive large numbers of children every day ... Many of them have hearing problems," Mohammed said as he diagnosed a child.

The physician noted that the clinic doctors do their best to identify the health problems, adding the hospital has so far offered dozens of hearing aids to sick children.

"This is project is of great value and it should continue," he said.