Saturday, November 23, 2013

Avert water wars - build desalination plants - SFGate

Joel Brinkley

A woman shields herself from the sun as she crosses a parched landscape last year toward a water source that supplies Islamabad and Rawalpindi in Pakistan. Photo: B.K. Bangash, Associated Press

Email This
Font

Get ready for the water wars.

Most of the world's population takes water for granted, just like air - two life-sustaining substances. After all, the human body is nearly two-thirds water.

But a Hindustan Times blogger said that in India right now, as in so many other places around the globe, drinkable water has become such a precious commodity that it's dragging the world into "water wars to follow the ones for the control of fuel oil."

Climate change is drying up lakes and rivers almost everywhere. In Australia, for example, an unprecedented heat wave brought on massive wildfires and critical water shortages.

As water grows scarce, more countries are building dams on rivers to hog most of the water for themselves, depriving the nations downstream. Already, Egypt had threatened to bomb the Grand Renaissance Dam upstream on the Nile River in Ethiopia.

And as the Earth's population crossed the 7 billion mark last year, more and more water sources are so polluted that drinking the water can kill you. No one's counting, but various government and private estimates indicate that worldwide, tens of thousands of children die every day from drinking contaminated water.

By most estimates, half the world's people live in places where clean water is not easily available. Bangalore, India, for example once had 400 lakes in its vicinity. Now, the New Indian Express newspaper wrote, only 40 are left, and all of them are polluted.

Hence the fights. One of the biggest areas of conflict is the India-Pakistan-China nexus. Multiple rivers intertwine the countries, and as water levels fall, all three are building dams to keep much of the water for themselves.

China has built more dams than any other nation, making numerous countries angry because Chinese rivers flow into more adjacent states than from any other state. And yet, even with 14 different downstream border states, China refuses to agree to any water treaties. Right now, China has approved plans to build 54 more dams on rivers, many of which serve as the lifeblood of neighboring states.

In China's north, "desertification" is turning vast areas into dust bowls. So the government is trying to divert 6 trillion gallons of water per year from the Yangtze River to reclaim the area, worrying people in other parts of China who rely on the Yangtze for their own water.

In Iran, farmers in one region destroyed a water-pump station that was carrying water away from their area to the city of Yazd. That started a fight with security forces, but the farmers are remaining on station to make sure the pump is not rebuilt.

A recent NASA study warned of an "alarming rate of decrease in total water storage" in Iraq's "Tigris and Euphrates river basins, which currently have the second-fastest rate of groundwater storage loss on Earth, after India." The report warned that water scarcity could become another cause of conflict.

Egypt's military threats against Ethiopia begin to make sense when you realize that Egypt's 84 million people draw 95 percent of their water from the Nile River. A common saying is that without the Nile there is no Egypt.

The U.S. House of Representatives recently held a hearing on water shortages and other threats in Central Asia, and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Costa Mesa (Orange County), warned of another potential conflict, quoting Uzbekistan's president, Islam Karimov: "Uzbekistan will even use weapons if necessary" against its northern neighbor Kazakhstan "to get the water passing through (Kyrgyzstan) territory that we intend to accumulate in reservoirs."

In Sri Lanka this month, the Daily News wrote: "We can live many days without food, but without water it is about three days." Still, "we can't seem to get the right water to the right people at the right time. ... More people have access to cell phones than safe water."

So where is all this water going? With ever-rising temperatures, more and more water evaporates and returns to the ground as rain. But most of it falls into the oceans. That's one reason sea levels are rising worldwide, threatening vast coastal areas.

But all of that leaves the world with an expensive but straightforward solution to the water-shortage problem everywhere. Build desalination plants, as Australia, Israel, Saudi Arabia and other well-off, water-stressed states are already doing.

Soon enough, whichever country starts marketing these critically important plants worldwide will make a lot of money and grow to be seen as a savior for millions of the world's people.

© 2013 Joel Brinkley Joel Brinkley is the Hearst professional in residence at Stanford University and a Pulitzer Prize-winning former correspondent for the New York Times. To comment, go to sfgate.com/submissions/#1)

Nile talks between Egypt, Ethiopia fail to reach deal

November 21, 2013 (ADDIS ABABA) – The Ethiopian and Egyptian leaders on Tuesday held talks in Kuwait over Cairo’s concern regarding the construction of what will upon completion be Africa’s biggest hydro power plant.

According to Al Jazeera, Ethiopia’s prime minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, and Egypt’s interim president, Adly Mansour, discussed the row over the Nile on the sidelines of an Afro-Arab Summit in Kuwait.

However, the talks between the two leaders ended with failure to reach an agreement, particularly after the Egyptian president demanded to negotiate over the dam project, a request rejected by the Ethiopian premier.

Egypt has proposed for reduction in the size of Nile dam’s structure and on the water holding capacity of its reservoir which is projected to hold 63 billion cubic meters.

Sudan Tribune’s attempts to contact officials in the prime minister’s office were futile as they were reported to be out of the country.

Egypt says the Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam, being built at Nile tributary near the Sudanese border will diminish the water supply to its soil.

Water security is a prime concern to the North African nation as the Blue Nile -which has its soruce in Ethiopia- is the source to 85 % of Egypt’s resource of water.

Egypt argues that it does not have other alternative water sources unlike other Nile Basin Countries and insists the colonial-era agreement which gives Egypt around 70 percent of Nile River water sources shouldn’t be violated.

Addis Ababa however says its controversial dam project will not affect the water interest of the two downstream countries - Egypt and Sudan.

Ethiopia’s Minister of Water and Energy, Alemayehu Tegenu, told Sudan Tribune that his country won’t back off from its plans to build the power plant because of Egypt’s concern.

He said one country’s hegemony over a regional resource that belongs to all Nile Basin Countries is unacceptable.

Tegenu further said the hydropower plant is a regional project that would benefit all Nile Basin Countries and it shouldn’t be a source confrontation but cooperation.

A panel of international experts who were tasked to assess the dam project’s regional impact said in their final findings that the power plant project doesn’t have any adverse impacts on Egypt or Sudan.

The meeting in Kuwait was the first for the two leaders since former Egyptian president; Mohamed Morsi was ousted in July by the military following mass protests.

Egypt has in the past warned against any upstream projects and there has never been such bigger project along the river since Ethiopia launched the mega dam project two years ago.

Tensions between Ethiopia and Egypt escalated after Addis Ababa started diverting the course of the Nile River in May as part of an engineering work.

Following the diversion work Egypt’s president, Mohamed Morsi, warned that all options were being considered to stop the dam.

The $4.2 billion massive Hydro power plant is currently 30 % complete and will produce 6,000 Megawatts of energy upon completion.

Monday, November 18, 2013

Fahmy holds intensive round of meetings in Kuwait - Daily News Egypt

Foreign Minister discusses range of issues with African and Arab counterparts ahead of summit

Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmi attends the Arab-African Foreign Ministers meeting in Kuwait city on November 17, 2013. (AFP PHOTO/YASSER AL-ZAYYAT)

Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs conducted several meetings on Sunday with his counterparts from Sudan, Djibouti, Nigeria, Algeria and Jordan, as well as African Union Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. The meetings covered a range of issues including Egypt’s water security, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and the status of Egypt’s membership to the African Union Peace and Security Council, according to ministry statements

During the discussions with his counterparts from the African continent and Dlamini-Zuma, Fahmy discussed Egypt’s status within the African Union council from which Egypt was suspended following the ouster of former President Mohamed Morsi in July. The statements from the ministry indicate that the African ministers support Egypt’s reinstatement into the council.

According to the spokesman for the ministry, Dlamini-Zuma said that she “wishes for the [Egyptian] government to implement the road map,” adding that the African Union is following the situation closely. “Everyone hopes for Egypt to resume its vital role in the Union as soon as possible,” she added, according to the ministry spokesman.

Fahmy discussed the situation of the GERD with his Sudanese counterpart Ali Karti, focusing particularly on the trilateral negotiations, which also include Ethiopia. As downstream countries, Egypt and Sudan fear that the construction of the dam could have a detrimental effect on the share of the Nile water, of which Egypt currently receives the largest portion.

Nigerian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Viola Adaku Onwuliri and Fahmy agreed on strengthening relations between the two countries and discussed potential areas of cooperation. Fahmy also informed his counterpart about his recent visits to countries in the Nile Basin and Senegal, stressing that Egypt is seeking to improve relations with African nations.

Fahmy and his Jordanian counterpart Nasser Judeh discussed the progress of the Israeli-Palestinian final status negotiations, the Syrian conflict and the efforts for convening the proposed Geneva II conference to achieve peace in the war-torn country.

Fahmy is part of the Egyptian delegation attending the third Africa-Arab Summit being held in Kuwait. The foreign minister was joined in Kuwait on Sunday by interim President Adly Mansour, interim Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of International Cooperation Ziad Bahaa El-Din and interim Minister of Trade and Industry Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour.

The spokesman for the foreign ministry told Daily News Egypt on Sunday that the Egyptian delegation would focus on promoting development cooperation in Africa. The spokesman also confirmed that Fahmy would hold “many meetings on the side of the summit.”

In recent months the ministry has embarked on improving relations with African countries, the relationships with which had been largely neglected by previous regimes. Fahmy has travelled to countries in the Nile Basin and has met with his Ethiopian counterpart to discuss the issues at hand. The ministry also dispatched diplomats on a tour of African nations to express Egypt’s rejection of the African Union suspension as well as portray the “correct and proper image” of Egypt.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Ambassador Mona Omar: Egypt lacks a cohesive plan to deal with Africa and Nile basin countries - Daily News Egypt

Ambassador Mona Omar: Egypt lacks a cohesive plan to deal with Africa and Nile basin countries

Daily News Egypt / November 13, 2013 / 6 Comments / 423 Views

Presidential envoy discusses Egypt’s historic right to Nile water and its role in the region

Ambassador Mona Omar
(Photo from Al-Borsa News)

By Mohammed Abdel Monser

“International crises are not solved by severing ties between states or threatening war,” said Mona Omar, Egyptian presidential envoy to the African Union. “Instead, they are resolved by creating a climate of mutual trust between the two parties and allowing access to compromise and solutions.”

Relations have deteriorated between Egypt and Ethiopia due to the Addis Ababa Declaration, a plan to divert the Nile River for procedures associated with building a dam. Egypt questioned the safety of this measure as well as its impact on the water supply of countries downstream. The declaration came the day after former president Mohammed Morsi left the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa last May.

Egypt was not surprised that a number of Nile basin countries signed the Entebbe agreement, Mona Omar told Al Borsa,as the signatories gave Egypt an opportunity to find a solution in May 2013 but this chance was wasted. Egypt did not seek the permission of Meles Zenawi, Prime Minister of Ethiopia, to delay the agreement until new elections were held, she said.

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Organisation for African Unity, now known as the African Union, former President Mohammed Morsi had come to an agreement with Ethiopian Prime Minister Haile Mariam Disalin,at the Special Summit for the Leaders and Governments of the African Union, to continue coordinating on the issue of the Nile. But hours after leaving Mercy airport in Addis Ababa, the announcement came from Ethiopia.

“Reports written by experts and technocrats about solving the question of the dam are conflicting, despite a full year of research. This makes politicians unable to determine whetherreal harm to Egypt is involved in the issue,” said Omar.

Members of the Technical Egyptian National Committee to Study the Dam have said that studies completed on the Ethiopian side were insufficient to prove that Egypt would not be harmed by construction of the dam. This pushed the tripartite committee to commission extra research.

Omar emphasised that it was impossible for any Egyptian representatives to come to an official agreement on Entebbe unless Egypt’s historic rights to the waters of the Nile are recognized,as international law requires governments to adhere to treaties signed in the era of colonialism. Signatories must adhere to these conventions and agree not to set up any projects on the Nile before getting the approval of Egypt. Any vote must be won by consensus, not majority vote, she said.

Omar explained the circumstances surrounding the agreements on sharing Nile waters. Egypt was under the yoke of colonialism during the signing of the treaty, she said, whereas Ethiopia was the independent state of Abyssinia in 1902. The third king of Abyssinia pledged, along with the British government, not to issue any directivesregarding facilities on the Blue Nile, Lake Tana or the Sobat River that could intercept water from the Nile unless the British government agreed in advance along with the government of Sudan. This treaty was signed in Amharic.

Omar elaborated: “The third article of the 1906 agreement between Great Britain and the Congo states that the last pledge not to undertake or allow the establishment of any projects on the Samliki or Ashanju Rivers that might reduce water flowing into Lake Albert, unless agreed upon with the government of Sudan. The third article of the 1891 treaty between Great Britain and Italy determined influence in each country in East Africa and provided against the establishment of any works on the Atbara River that would modify water flow to the Nile in any way. The Treaty of 1929, signed between Egypt and Great Britain on behalf of Sudan, Kenya, Tanganyika and Uganda, stipulated that any projects on the Nile River, its tributaries or lakes fed by it are only possiblewith Egypt’s consent. This applied especially in cases involving generating electricity or anything that could potentially affect the amount of water obtained by Egypt. It further provided for Egypt’s right to control the course of the river from its source to its mouth as well as efforts to conduct research and monitor implementation of projects that could benefit Egypt.”

According to Omar, Egypt has been keen throughout its history to support development in the Nile basin countries. Egypt contributed to the construction of the Owen dam to generate electricity as part of the agreement between Egypt and Great Britain in 1949, which stipulates cooperation between Egypt and Uganda in constructing the reservoir.

Omar also pointed to an agreement between the Egyptian and Ugandan governments to regulate water flow by Egyptian irrigation engineers in Uganda. The electricity council in Uganda was to handle administration and maintenance of its reservoir, committing not to affect operation on the power plant or the amount of water reaching Egypt. When the agreement was signed by Egypt and Sudan in 1959, Egypt’s population was 20 million. That number has now reached 90 million and,according to Omar,Egypt’s share of the Nile must be agreed and amended through dialogue with the upstream countries.

Omar said the agreement provided for projects established along the river to increase revenue lost in the Mountain, Zaraf, and Ghazal Sea as well as its branches on the Sobat River, its tributaries, and the White Nile Basin. The costs of these projects will be divided up in addition to the water that it brings, an amount which is expected to total up to 18 billion cubic metres.

The fourth article of the convention states that the potential benefits from establishing the dam will be 22 billion cubic metres per year, said Omar. 14.5 of billion cubic metres will be sent to Sudan and just four billion to Egypt, thus Sudan’s share of the Nile water is 18.5 billion cubic metres while Egypt receives 55.5 billion cubic metres. This is built upon the assumption that the Aswan River produces 84 billion cubic metres of water but ten billion cubic metres are lost to evaporation.

According to Omar, Egypt has made progress in the Nile Basin Initiative and participated in a study of electricity projects across the countries as well as projects promoting regional trade and agricultural productivity. This would maximize trade crops for countries located along the southern Nile. Other projects are in place to promote fish production and provide necessary technical support to convert investment opportunities into bankable projects.

Within the previous framework, US$8,000,000 were allocated to carry out technical studies for sub-basins and other initiatives that have almost been completed. Organic farming formed one of these initiatives and demand for produce has increased internationally day after day in global markets, Omar said.

Omar added that the relatively small number of visits by former presidents Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak to African countries led to a lack of media coverage of events taking place there and an overall lackof Egyptian presence in Africa. “During the period of Sadat and Mubarak’s rule, Egypt missed an opportunity to be present on the continent of Africa. All accomplishments were merely a reaction and confined to sending aid in times of disaster. The businessmen who went to Africa were not able to compete with investors from China, India, Turks, and Arabs from the Gulf.”

Egypt has however contributed to development projects in Africa, said Omar. The Technical Cooperation Fund with Africa in the early eighties sent experts all over and funded many scholarships while simultaneously organising several training sessions to build capacity. These efforts, however, have largely not been covered in the media, she explained.

Ambassador Mona Omar: Egypt lacks a cohesive plan to deal with Africa and Nile basin countries - Daily News Egypt

Ambassador Mona Omar
(Photo from Al-Borsa News)

By Mohammed Abdel Monser

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Ethiopians of Omo valley are been evicted and their alnd is given to the international sepculators plantion wateredd by Gibe Dams

Omo Valley — As the construction of a major transmission line to export electricity generated from one of Ethiopia's major hydropower projects gets underway, there are growing concerns that pastoralist communities living in the region are under threat.

The Gibe III dam, which will generate 1,800 megawatts (MW), is being built in southeast Ethiopia on the Omo River at a cost of 1.7 billion dollars. It is expected to earn the government over 400 million dollars annually from power exports. On completion in 2015 it will be the world's fourth-largest dam.

But the dam is expected to debilitate the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of indigenous communities in Ethiopia's Lower Omo Valley and those living around Kenya's Lake Turkana who depend on the Omo River.

The Bodi, Daasanach, Kara, Mursi, Kwegu and Nyangatom ethnic communities who live along the Omo River depend on its annual flooding to practice flood-retreat cultivation for their survival and livelihoods.

But the semi-nomadic Mursi ethnic community are being resettled as part of the Ethiopian government's villagisation programme to make room for a large sugar plantation, which will turn roaming pastoralists into sedentary farmers. The hundreds of kilometres of irrigation canals currently being dug to divert the Omo River's waters to feed these large plantations will make it impossible for the indigenous communities to live as they have always done.

"We are being told that our land is private property. We are very worried about our survival as we are being forced to move where there is no water, grass or crops," a Mursi community member told IPS.

The Omo Valley is set to become a powerhouse of large commercial farming irrigated by the Gibe III dam. To date 445,000 hectares have been allocated to Malaysian, Indian and other foreign companies to grow sugar, biofuels, cereals and other crops.

"The Gibe III will worsen poverty for the most vulnerable. The government already has trouble managing hunger and poverty [among] its citizenry. By taking over land and water resources in the Omo Valley, it is creating a new class of 'internal refugees' who will no longer be self-sufficient," Lori Pottinger from environmental NGO International Rivers told IPS.

Top global financiers, including the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB), have committed 1.2 billion dollars to a 1,070 km high-voltage line that will run from Wolayta-Sodo in Ethiopia to Suswa, 100 km northwest of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

The transmission line, powered by Ethiopia's Gibe III, will connect the country's electrical grid with Kenya and will have a capacity to carry 2,000 MW between the two countries.

According to the AfDB, it will promote renewable power generation, regional cooperation, and will ensure access to reliable and affordable energy to around 870,000 households by 2018.

Although the latest U.N. Development Programme Human Development report ranks Ethiopia 173rd out of 187 countries, Ethiopia, Africa's second-most populous country, is one of the continent's fastest-growing economies.

According to Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, Ethiopia's economy is set to maintain a growth rate of 11 percent in 2014.

Fully exploiting its massive water resources to generate a hydropower potential of up to 45,000 MW in order to sell surplus electricity to its neighbours is central to Ethiopia's Growth and Transformation plan, a five-year plan to develop the country's economy.

The Horn of Africa nation currently generates 2,000 MW from six hydroelectric dams and invests more of its resources in hydropower than any other country in Africa - one third of its total GNP of about 77 billion dollars.

According to a World Bank report published in 2010, only 17 percent of Ethiopia's 84.7 million people had access to electricity at the time of the report. By 2018, 100 percent of the population will have access to power, according to state power provider Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCO).

"We are helping mitigate climate risk of fossil fuel consumption and also reduce rampant deforestation rates in Ethiopia. Hydropower will benefit our development," Miheret Debebe, chief executive officer of EEPCO, told IPS.

The Ethiopian government insists that the welfare of pastoralist communities being resettled is a priority and that they will benefit from developments in the Omo Valley.

"We are working hard to safeguard them and help them to adapt to the changing conditions," government spokesperson Shimeles Kemal told IPS.

However, there are concerns that ethnic groups like the Mursi are not being consulted about their changing future. "If we resist resettlement we will be arrested," a Mursi elder told IPS.

"We fear for the future. Our way of life is under threat. We are being told to stop moving with our cattle, to stop wearing our traditional dress and to sell our cattle. Cattle and movement is everything to the Mursi."

The importance of ensuring that benefits from Ethiopia's national development projects do not come at a price of endangering the lives of hundreds of thousands pastoralist tribes is critical said Ben Braga, president of the World Water Council. Braga decried governments that failed to compensate communities like the Mursi as displacement of surrounding communities is always an inevitable consequence of major dams that need plenty of advanced planning to avoid emergencies.

"How can we compensate these people so that the majority of the country can benefit from electricity? There is a need for better compensatory mechanisms to ensure that benefits are shared and that all stakeholders are included in consultations prior to construction," he told IPS.Ethiop

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Egypt-Ethiopia Nile talks end on sour note - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

KHARTOUM, Sudan — Disputes and disagreements erupted again between Egypt and Ethiopia concerning the Nile River dam construction, after both countries failed to reach an agreement governing the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in their initial negotiating session. The attempt at dialogue quickly ended, while the crisis of trust between the two countries resurfaced as their fears that the other might appropriate the Nile’s waters became evident.

Summary⎙ Print Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan held tripartite talks on the Renaissance Dam in Khartoum, failing to make progress on their dispute over the Nile.

Author Ayah AmanPosted November 7, 2013

Translator(s)Kamal Fayad

Egyptian, Ethiopian and Sudanese ministers of water resources met in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Sunday, Nov. 4, to begin the first round of negotiating sessions set to deal with the Renaissance Dam, as well as to consult with each other on the mechanisms needed to complete it, and how to implement the recommendations of an international committee of technical experts. The latter concluded its activities on May 27 after studying the effects of the dam on the water security of Egypt and Sudan.

The meetings began with an opening session, attended by Al-Monitor, in which the ministers of water resources from all three countries spoke about the prevailing spirit of cooperation and contentment, as well as the principle of mutual good will and a desire to prevent harm to others. Egypt's minister of irrigation affirmed in a speech that Egypt would not stand against development in countries of the Nile Basin, as long as it did not adversely affect it. The Ethiopian minister countered that his country would not cause harm to any downstream countries, meaning Egypt and Sudan.

Attitudes quickly changed, however, once the closed sessions began and disagreements mounted. As a result, the meetings were suspended and a new date for negotiations was set for Dec. 8.

“We were taken aback by Ethiopia’s attempts to impose its agenda on us during the meetings, while it outright failed to recognize the international committee’s recommendations pertaining to the dam. Disagreements revolved around how to establish a committee or body through which the three countries would work to implement those recommendations,” an Egyptian diplomatic source who participated in the meetings told Al-Monitor.

“Egypt is of the opinion that it is necessary for Ethiopia to acknowledge that there are problems associated with the dam and that it will have negative effects on Egypt. Clear conditions must be set, and Ethiopia must commit to abide by and never circumvent them. This is why Egypt has insisted on the presence of international experts who would serve to validate Egypt’s position before the international community, though Ethiopia has objected to this,” added the source who requested anonymity.

Egyptian concerns about the Renaissance Dam are confined to its technical specifications, the size of the projected structure and the holding capacity of the reservoir attached to it, which might negatively affect the flow of water into Egypt and decrease the rate of electricity production at the Aswan Dam. Furthermore, Ethiopia did not submit sufficient studies concerning the dam’s safety and its ecological and social impact.

“We were surprised by Ethiopia’s rejection of our proposals during the meeting. We cannot support the dam without added proof of good intentions from the Ethiopian side. All options are open before Egypt, if Ethiopia does not acquiesce to our conditions,” another Egyptian source present at the meetings told Al-Monitor.

“We do not want to characterize the negotiations as having failed. We will give ourselves another chance to talk and better clarify everybody’s points of view,” Egypt’s Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources, Mohammed Abdel Moteleb, further told Al-Monitor.

Ethiopian Minister of Water and Energy Alamayo Tegno, in a statement given to Al-Monitor after the meetings, said: “The decision to build the Renaissance Dam is resolute, both by the government and the Ethiopian people. We are in complete agreement with Sudan about all the details pertaining to the completion of the dam. Egypt will certainly come to understand this and espouse our position.”

“What is currently taking place is a dispute and not a difference in opinion. We have repeatedly affirmed our intention not to harm any other country. Financing difficulties will not hinder our efforts, since the Ethiopian people are mobilized in favor of building the dam. Ethiopia has now become one of the world’s 10 fastest-developing countries,” Tegno continued.

Cairo is currently mulling taking a number of quick steps prior to the second session of negotiations scheduled for Dec. 8. In this regard, Egypt’s political leadership seemed comfortable with the matter when the Egyptian Prime Minister Hazem el-Biblawi announced before the first session was held that the Renaissance Dam could bring prosperity to Egypt. This is in direct contrast with Egypt’s stance during negotiations.

An Egyptian diplomatic source told Al-Monitor that Cairo’s options right now revolve around maintaining international pressure and preventing foreign funding of the dam project to slow construction until an agreement can be reached with the Ethiopians. Egypt will also make public the official report prepared by the international committee of technical experts, which shows that the dam will have a negative impact if it is built according to the current planned dimensions.

“Continuing to follow the technical track in negotiations pertaining to the Renaissance Dam between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia will lead nowhere. A political agreement must be reached, and an official mechanism established by the senior leaders of all three countries, through which direct negotiations are held until each country’s positions and decisions can be clearly defined,” the source affirmed.

As the tug of war between the Egyptian and Ethiopian delegations intensified during the first negotiating session, Sudan fully and unreservedly adopted the Ethiopian position. None of the Sudanese delegation members wanted to comment about the meetings, though Sudanese Minister of Water and Energy Osama Abdallah issued a very brief news statement. In it, he said that an atmosphere of honesty and brotherhood prevailed over the meetings, while they all tried to find the best avenues to move forward. He added that they would meet again to reconsider the matter.

The door is still open to all possibilities and the upcoming negotiations between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia about the Renaissance Dam could either succeed or fail. Available information, however, seems to indicate that disagreements and a lack of confidence still prevail between the Egyptian and Ethiopian sides, with Sudan joining the latter’s camp to safeguard its interests and receive a part of the ensuing benefits. Egypt, on the other hand, has failed to clearly state whether it will participate in building the dam, despite the positive statements issued by the country’s political and diplomatic leadership in this regard.