the construction of The gigantic hydroelectric power plant in Ethiopia goes ahead – in the year 2022, the dam should be finished. But the conversations around the use of the precious Nile water stuck for years in the cul-de-SAC. Shortly after the end of the most recent round of Negotiations in the duration of the conflict to the Great Ethiopian Renaissance dam (GERD) plating the main rivals of Egypt and Ethiopia, again with the blame game. Experts consider that the situation in the meantime, as a security risk for the Region.
security danger
For Dawid Wolde Giorgis from the International Institute for security in Addis Ababa is the standstill of the negotiations between Egypt and Ethiopia is critical: “The current Situation should not be left only to the two countries. This will have an impact on the security situation in the Region and in Africa,” says Giorgis Interview in the DW. If the confrontation stop, it could come to war in the Region, fears Giorgis. “The only way forward for both countries is a crisis meeting of all Nile States to convene and lead at the same time the dialogue with the heads of state of African countries.”
What is at stake in the conflict: Egypt fears for its water supply – the Land of the Nile, with its almost 100 million inhabitants, almost completely from this source of Life is dependent. The GERD dam is located upriver on the Blue Nile and would reduce the amount of water that flows to Egypt more clearly. Depending on how quickly Ethiopia, the basin fills, attributed to Egypt with 14 to 22 percent less water, in extreme cases, 30 per cent of agricultural land would be desolate.
Egypt calls on the UN security Council for help
Egypt has turned on, meanwhile the security Council of the United Nations. The highest UN body to intervene in the dispute with Ethiopia and the Sudan have a “fair and balanced solution,” said the Egyptian foreign Ministry. Ethiopia-take in the talks a “negative attitude” and not enough “political will”, it said.
in Ethiopia, but so far not on the future downstream-flowing water quantities and time periods set. Instead, facts will be created: In July, the rainy season, an ideal time begins to fill the gigantic 74 billion cubic meters of water put pool. The downstream riparian Egypt and Sudan see the upcoming rainy season with a great worry – soon, the owner wants to turbines the first Stream of the dam test.
rings in the water level
Ethiopia hopes to 4.9 billion cubic meters of water during the months of July and August to compensate. The volume in this initial Filling phase of the massive basin would be sufficient to start in mid-2021, the first two turbines. Until the reservoir is filled with water, is expected to take another seven years so that the dam can be expected to be with all 16 turbines 2029 – five years late – in operation. Then the largest hydroelectric power plant on the continent to supply the East African countries with electricity.
for a decade, the three countries bordering the Blue Nile rings to the question of how the water can be fairly shared. In Egypt, the concern of the fields in the valley of the Nile could dry up desolate and drinking water wells is growing since then. Sudan shares such Concerns, but also advantages: Cheaper electricity for the development projects in the country and less Flooding would be of benefit to the poor country.
point of contention: dealing with drought
the Main point of contention remains: How to future periods of drought can be reduced – who is in the obligation? “The Management of drought is a shared responsibility,” says Gedion Asfaw of the DW. He is the head of the Ethiopian Delegation in the “Tripartite Commission” and chief negotiator for Ethiopia in the Nile dispute. Asfaw refers to the fact that it was decided that the construction and thus also with the congestion started could be, while the negotiations were still under way. “The parties will start the talks again. The filling of the basin is not dependent on the state of the negotiations,” writes Asfaw on DW.
The Sudan – a fragile country, the wars, to the citizens, and a Revolution needs to find a year ago, just to stability – has proposed that the negotiations with Egypt and Ethiopia on a Mega-dam on the Nile to the Prime Minister-level upgrade. Such a Meeting is not yet scheduled but. The open-ended questions “are of a legal nature, in particular in terms of a mechanism for joint water use,” said the Sudanese Minister for water resources, Yasser Abbas, this week in a press conference.
His Egyptian counterpart, Mohamed Abdel-Aty, pushes the Failure of the recent talks on Ethiopia: “in the end, due to the stubborn attitude of Ethiopia in the technical and legal issues no significant progress”.
Open questions
to clarify, Given the deadlocked situation, the Brussels-based International Crisis Group (ICG) warned: If the coming weeks if no agreement will be achieved, increased the tensions between the three countries. “Whether it happens before the start of the accumulation or then: The parties must clarify to the negotiating table and open questions,” says William Davison, Ethiopia expert at the ICG.
In recent discussions, the focus was on the legal aspects and the Status of the agreement. “Egypt and Sudan want to secure that any disputes are to be decided in the planned agreement in the international court proceedings – Ethiopia rejects this,” says Davison.
compromises urgently
looking for another point of dispute: Egypt wants to set for the future as many Details as possible in the agreement. “Ethiopia attempted, however, the agreement as dynamic as possible and hold nothing to write what binds the country to the drain of minimum quantities. In the face of climate change, could affect these calculations, negative, wants Ethiopia debt, at the end, not even water,” says Davison.
of The crisis, researchers emphasized: “you must allow compromises.” But there is a lack of trust between the three parties, and they insisted on their own interests. “The point is not yet reached in this process, they grow beyond themselves, to find a common solution.”
The dispute concerned, increasingly, actors outside of Africa: The EU has offered recently as a mediator. And the US warned, for the people in East Africa, it is imperative that Ethiopia shows fair. There must first be a Deal, before the Damming of the Nile water is started.
author: Martina Schwikowski
*to will be The contribution of “Nile dam: Ethiopia is turning the faucet” published by Deutsche Welle. Contact with the executives here.
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