Waterfalls on the Blue Nile. Ethiopia has plans to grab hold of a bigger share of the river despite Egypt’s long held monopoly.
Defiant of Egypt’s historic monopoly over its flow, Ethiopia is pushing ahead with a controversial plan to build a massive dam on the Nile river. Egypt and Sudan have maintained control of the Nile through a series of laws originally brokered by colonial powers in 1929.
But last May, six upstream countries signed a legally binding document that dispossessed Egypt of its right to veto decisions regarding the Nile’s distribution. Buoyed by President Hosni Mubarak’s recent ouster, and undaunted by criticism, Ethiopia insists that it will proceed with its plan even without international support.
At a recent news conference, Ethiopia’s Water and Energy Minister Alemayehu Tegenu explained that construction of the dam near the Ethiopian and Sudanese border is expected to start soon, Reuters reports.
This despite widespread opposition to the project, which Minister Tegenu suspects is a direct result of Egypt’s campaign to prevent the dam’s construction.
But Mr. Tegunu is adamant that Ethiopia will proceed with the $4.78 billion dollar project even without donor support. In order to finance the project, they will sell off government bonds.
At present, Ethiopia uses 1% of its annual 86% contribution of Nile water, while Egypt has access to 55 out of the river’s 84 billion cubic meter annual flow. Last year, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Burundi signed an agreement to re-apportion the Nile, an agreement Egypt refuses to acknowledge.
The Nile Dam is expected to generate 5,250MW of hydroelectricity after its completion in approximately 44 months, contributing more than a third to the country’s $12 billion plan to generate 15,000 MW within the next 25 years.
Apart from a non-renewable aquifer, Egypt relies almost exclusively on the Nile to provide for its 85 million and counting residents and is eager to maintain its control. So eager, some mutter, that this dispute could lead to war.
The Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi told Reuters that Egypt is sending rebel groups into its country, but that any effort to declare war on the upstream riparian nations would result in failure.
It behooves Egypt to take diplomatic action, cede its unbalanced influence without sacrificing a reasonable percentage, and start working overtime to improve management of those water resources it does have.
:: Reuters
More on the Nile River:
American Elections Are Bad for the Nile Delta
In The Face of Nilelessness, Egyptians Protest Water Shortages
Nile Water Kills 17,000 Children Each Year
Top image via wikicommons
Author: Tafline Laylin
As a tour leader who led “eco-friendly” camping trips throughout North America, Tafline soon realized that she was instead leaving behind a trail of gas fumes, plastic bottles and Pringles. In fact, wherever she traveled – whether it was Viet Nam or South Africa or England – it became clear how inefficiently the mandate to re-think our consumer culture is reaching the general public. Born in Iran, raised in South Africa and the United States, she currently splits her time between Africa and the Middle East. Tafline can be reached at tafline (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
In the end, you will have assigned 136 confidence points (16+15+14+.
It is Tennessee’s Rocky Top, Florida’s Old Ball Coach, and of course the Gator
Chomp and the mighty Tim Tebow. I guess a handful of suspensions was
enough to satisfy the NCAA.
Well don’t think Ethiopia would not complete the Grand Dam due to lack of Fund. We Ethiopians are determined to complete it on time benefit from our God given gifts, our rivers. Remeber that Ethiopians are stubborn when it comes to conspiracy. If the Egyptians don’t chose the win-win solution, they might have plan B to derail Ethiopia through war which has repeatedly proved to be futile. In history, Egyptians won Ethiopia when Moses commanded their fighters long time ago. But when it comes to defending our motherland, we are invincible and we are certainly victories even before we are engaged in war.
God Bless Ethiopia
Dear freinds,
There are only two options for egypt, 1. to accept the new threaty that is signed in uganda which reduces the nile share of egypt where as reduces poverty in upper countries like ethiopia. 2. to open war against upper countries mainly with ethiopia and colonize it and take all the sourch of nile…
but the second option seems to be a night mare as ETHIOPIA HAS NEVER BEEN DEFETED BY ITS ENEMY, i mean since pre hitorical time!!!!!!!!!
if the Egyptain want to check their chance, they can try but the out come could be cathatrophic. In one side, whole egypt is along the nile river which is very easy for air strik, and destryoying just the aswan dam could finish egypt, and this so simple for the ethiopia air force that has extensive war experience.
but i wish both countries negotiate and take their part
To;Gragn Ahmed
am thinking u are not a well read person. from the choice of name to things u wrote it seems like you want to stir up tensions between Ethiopians
first of Ethiopia is not led by a few Orthodox,ethiopia might not be the most demacratic country in the world but we sure are democratic when it comes to religion,that! no one can deny!
second if you where a well raised Ethiopian you would have known not to speak ill of your brothers to his enemy no mater what!! we will deal with our own problems, and it is better my brother mistreat me than my enemy destroy him and then inevitably me
and to all Egyptians, is it our problem that you settled in a desert where the only source of water comes from a foreign land? is it our problem that you keep on breeding even though you know that you have limited resources? is it our problem that you haven’t found other employment for the what i hear to be 40% of your population besides farming? is it our problem that you haven’t grown enough economically, that you still depend on other nations resources despite monopolizing one of the worlds biggest river for thousands of years?
NO!!!!!!! it is not. And despite all the wealth that you boast on having,what have you done for us when we were dying of hunger? what are you doing now? we are still dying of the silliest things.despite what you have you haven’t given much back to the people who need it the most. but instead you have committed yourselves in failed wars in matters that were not directly your problems.you haven’t shown as one good will but you ask a lot from us.
And the funny thing is some of you threaten us with war,whats the worst a war can bring? death!! WE ARE ALREADY DYING!! better a bullet than a thousand stabs of hunger, better to die a warrior than die a hungry beggar
and saying Ethiopia’s history is not great with dams and their environmental impacts, and then siting gibe three as an example is just wrong.The white man is worried about some 300000 people in the omo valley would have water shortage problems if the dam is constructed when in fact a couple of years ago the area was flooded and they were air lifted out of there,and they are saying we are destroying there culture and lively hood; some of the tribes there are, or can be considered to be primitive, they are a tourist attraction.how long do you expect as to be your entertainment? how long must we live like animals for your anthropology classes? if these tribes want to be that way i say let them, but if they are like that because of lack of education and information,which i am betting my life is, well then this dams can and will help in significantly providing the desperately needed facility’s to them and the rest of the country
so in conclusion i say we must and will construct the dam,we must not act like the Egyptians and monopolize the water,though if anybody had the right to do so it is us,we are kind and considerate people,if Egypt is willing we will find and act in the fairest possible way that can benefit all, i have faith in my leaders after all they are Ethiopians. and finally, do not threaten as it is point less, what can you take from us that we haven’t already lost we are sick and tired of poverty and senseless deaths because we cant afford the simplest of things though i do not wish war on any country, if push come to shove me and mine will give our lives glady
it is a blessing to live in such times that will make history it is a blessing to live in a time where my country has a fighting chance to win a war with poverty and if and when we do i will be greeted as an equal by my fore fathers in the after life
God bless us all
can we all just get along…imagine if we (africa) becomes one nation….the world will be ours.
The Egyptian should know that we are not asked any donation or lending money for this project with others, and we will built this dam even scarifying our blood,
Yohannes
Looks like Ethiopia is going to give Egypt a break and will wait for new government before taking action:
http://www.greenprophet.com/2011/05/ethiopia-egypt-nile-dam/
Thank you Danit, this is the only way for us to prosper. As long as Ethiopia respects Eritreans, we can open the ports for peaceful and mutual economies. As for the Egypt issue, it’s understandable why they are acting the way they are; but the Nile originates in Ethiopia, so Ethiopians have to take care of their peoples. No to bullies.
We build the dam by ower own money, flash, blood, bone, life!!!!! I want to reveal one secrete to every body that our blood is the THICKEST of all, never back concerning our country. THE DAM CREATES UNITY, STRENGTH,…..b/n children of Ethiopia.
Gets well said to Lalyin.
Dear Lalyin, you’re still praying about the environmental destruction caused by Gilgel Gibe and you also pray for time. Ethiopia will surely be able to protect the population that will be displaced and many more Ethiopians. The environment! HA HA again obsolete rhetoric. Don’t you think the Aswan dam of 500km by 12km (6000 square km) would destroy Egypt if our small Gilgel Gibe is to be judged destructive. Didn’t Aswan liberate Egypt from food insecurity and poverty?
We call such rhetoric as “crocodile’ tear”. Weeps while swallowing you. How can you a non-ethiopian worry about the environment in Ethiopia while we the natives donot care a bit for its own people. Don’t worry. We will cover environment protection costs using the revenue generated by the electricity bill.
Never hope Ethiopia will give more time. The moto is “NOW OR NEVER”.
Samoa
Ethiopians are going to breading milk to Egypt & sudan by her new Abay/ Nile dam, by her own resourse.We will do it Layline,our blood is thiker than u.
WATER IS NATURAL GIFT ,BLUE NILE IS THE GIFT ETHIOPIA TO ALL NBI’ COUNTRIES . EGYPT & SUDAN MUST PROTECT EROSION ,DEFORESTATION ,FLOODING BY PLANTING TREES SOIL CONSERVATION BUILDING DAMS IN ETHIOPIAN HIGH LAND TO SUSTAIN NILE FLOW THOUGH OUT THE YEAR .OTHER WISE DUE TO POVERTY CUTTING DOWN OF FOREST FOR FIRE WOOD IN HIGH LAND ETHIOPIA MAY RESULT TO MINIMIZE RAIN RESULT THE NILE DECREASE IN VOLUME EVEN IT WILL DRIED LIKE ANY OTHER RIVER IN THE RIVER READ IN HISTORY THIS IS A CURSE FOR ALL ALL UP AND DOWN RIPARIAN NATIONS . PLEASE WISE ENOUGH TO USE JOINTLY .UNLES EGYPTIAN COOPERATE WITH US THEY ONLY CREATE BAD HISTORY FOR YOUR NEXT RATIONAL GENERATION AS WELL AS OURS.ANYWAY WE WRITE HISTORY THAT CAN NOT DELETE.THANK YOU ! GOD BLESS ETHIOPIA!
what ever it coasts; money, blood or our flash and bone, we will do it we don’t need any help. SORRY…. neither any Go-ahead from any one, that is our water, our oil and our blood. if the international agreement does’t help us why we do accept it and CHAW COLONIALISM we are in 21th century when Nile get to one drop we will divided in to 10 and share it if some is not happy with this SORRY we can’t help it. we can play with the similar players CHAW ABAY(NILE)
Gets: I couldn’t agree more. America and Canada (and soon China and India) emit the most greenhouse gases, and they usurp much of the world’s natural resources, but Ethiopia has to consider everyone when diverting water from the Nile. The Gibe III dam is a human rights travesty as many people will no longer receive their flood waters for farming (which means people living in an already dry and unforgivable environment- Southern Ethiopia, Northern Kenya – will starve). Let’s hope this new dam is better. And it will be better if your government takes time to conduct environmental assessments and considers the long term impact. People and the environment are not two separate entities; they are one and the same. A ruined environment is a ruined source of food, water, and medicine.
To Laylin:
You said…’dams don’t have the best environmental record. Especially Ethiopia’s dams’… You know what this is the funniest thing i ever heared since i was born. Well, you are right dams have negative side effects on the env’t, even there is a hyphothesis which explains that dams can cause the beneath earth unstable and be a reason for earth quakes, extinction of species etc… Who cares abt these things! Do you think that we Ethiopian’s care for such things. Hell no. We are not in a position to take care for your fancy env’tal problems.
After all it’s you westerner’s who emit zillions of quantillions toxic gases to the atmosphere each and every second, burying thousands of masses of nuclear wastes to mother earth, dumping those wastes to oceans and thus polluting ground water and resulting numerous harms to the human kind. It’s you the so called developed countries who gave an elephant ear to what scientists research talk about. You know what the saddest thing, b/c of your mistakes all human kind is paying.
Your mistake is threatening the life of a tribe deep living in amazon forest who doesn’t even know an ink pen exists. You mistake is making our mother earth hotter and melting gigantic antarctic ice masses which increases the sea and ocean levels causing floods and swallowing cities.
We build those dams on our river to eat three times a day. But you westernes have got accumulated nuclear heads which can able to destroy the earth three times and you continue to build those devils. At the end you will pay for that! Our planet is entering into an irreversible situation and you’re witnessing that.
So, darling let me advise you. Are you a passionate environmentalist? Blieve me you’ve got other things so much to worry about. I’m not a fan of our government. But I’m allergeic to such irrelevant and unnecessary ideas. So, let’s see what our gov’t can do! let’s see what Ethiopian people can do! I’m done.
for Tafline Laylin
Do not be biased with the reports of some interest groups who push other peoples agendas with a cover story of environment concern.
for Gragn Ahmed
you give yourself away that you are an Egyptian by saying(Coptic) no Ethiopian Christian or Muslim will refer to the Ethiopian Christians with these.You dare to divide us. unfortunately for you unlike some countries Christians and Muslims in Ethiopia have been living together for thousand of years even marriage.
Regarding the sea port the government by respecting the Eritrea peoples choice brings peace to the country and with its fruits we are now ready to build our dams on Nile.
there is a saying ‘history repeats itself’ thus, if Eygpt trys somethig against Ethiopians by any means, the saying comes true. the best witness for this is the Eygptians themselfs. one thing i would like to inform Either to Eygptians or anybody with the same thinking is that Ethiopians are united ever to extremely utilize their gift by God, BLUE NILE.
God blesss Ethiopia!!
Yes we can and finaly we win!!!this is our right no one give us our right and permit to exercise it,It is only God help us and give us a permission to do this!!!!!!God bless Ethiopia!!!
This is for mr grage Ahmed wether you are musilem or not Egypt doesn’t care your fate is where you belong trying to stand with Egypt didn’t save you or your family from starvation this is not religious matter it’s nationality and by the way I agree with you about the port and this is not meles project it’s ethiopias b/c meles will pass ethiopia will live forever so Stand for your childrens right God bless ethiopia
nile river dam the greatest thing that i need to see in my life. Our wealth has been used unfairly by egypt and sudan this is the time to use fairly by ethiopians
It is the prmission of God to use our resources that God has given us feely.We donot need war!but we have full right to defend ourselves from any thret or use of force that goes against our territorial integrity and political independence!!!!!!!
We Ethiopians need this great project b/c our country must develope with natural resourses. Abay(Blue nile) is one of best gift from our GOD. Today I bought goverment bond to participate in this project.
GOD bless Ethiopia
Dear Mr. gragh Ahmed,
You are talking many things which have no ground. You are trying to divided the Ethiopians stand towards the Millennium project by insulting H.E. Prime minster Meles Zenawie. I want to remind you that Meles is the right man to Ethiopia and We will stand along his side to materialize this project!!
NOW AM PROUD BEING AN ETHIOPIAN CZ OUR LEADER ANSWERED THE QUESTION OF MY HEART VIVA MELES ZENAWI. SOME OF US MAY NOT LIKE HIM BUT U KNOW WHAT HE IS A PATRIOT .AND AM READY TO FIGHT TO MA LAST BREATH WZ THE EGYPTIANS
Holy Bible: SAYS:
Psalms 68-31
Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.
Ethiopia has the right to access the NILE water. WE DON’T WANT WAR!!!!
BUT IF THE EGYPTIANS ARE NOT WILLING TO COOPERATE AND ACCEPT OUR PROJECTS IN ANY WAYS WE CAN DIE FOR OUR PEOPLE AND RESOURCES!!! I THINK EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS THE NECESSITY OF THE NILE DAM HYDROELECTRIC PLANT. SO WE CAN WIN EGYPT WITH EVERY ASPECT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! EVEN IF IT TAKES A TIME THE PROJECT WILL BE IN PLACE!!! AND THE PEOPLE OF ETHIOPIA WILL BE SUPPORTED BY GOD AND ALL ETHIOPIANS WILL SACRIFICE FOR IT!!!!!!!!!!!! THIS IS OUR PROPERTY WE HAVE THE RIGHT TO BUILD FOR THE COMMON INTERSET OF BOTH COUNTRIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THEY HAVE TO CONTRBUTE 30% OF THE COST NOT TO OPPOSE THE PROJECT WITH 10TH CENTURY THINKING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ABOUT THE PROJECT THE EGYPTIANS KNOWS EVRYTHING THAT IT WILL BENEFIT THEMSELVES AS WELL BUT THEY WILL NOT LISTEN AND COOPERATE.
THERE STEP IS:
1.TRY TO USE ERITERIA AS A TOOL TO PULL THE TENSION OF ETHIOPIA TO WAR
2.TRY TO USE OTHER UNREST MAKERS TO STOP THE PROJECT OF ETHIOPIA
3.FINALLY TO INFORCE SUDANESSE TO COOPERATE WITH THEM.
4.FINALLY THEY WILL COME BY THEM SELVES TO FIGHT WITH ETHIOIA.
BUT IF WE THINK NEGATIVE AS THEY DO. WE CAN PUT SOME RADIOACTIVE ELEMENT IN SO THAT ……………….. DON’T FORCE US TO THINK THESE KINDS OF BAD THINGS!!!!!!!!!!!
Dear Taflyn,
I hope you don’t mean time for enemies to pile up and succed with their insidious plans. Ethiopia has taken the over ten years to comeup with a win-win strategy for all riparian countries, simultaneously planning for its own solutions as plan B. Maybe you.ve never been hungry or saw one, thanks to Nile. As you would imagine huger hardly giveth time. I believe there is no best timing as this one. The Egyptian govt. should rather rush to maximize it’s share of benefits whether water flow or investment in the electricity genration or distribution. Because whether the NON-ETHIOPIAN public liketh it or not we Ethiopians are more than ready to realize the DAM, and protect it and Ethiopia if neccessary with our blood. SO don’t ask for more time and think of your poverty stricken brother-Africans in Ethiopia. No healthy mind would favor for destruction of its own environment and don’t be as MELES said “HOLIER THAN THOUGH”. But advocate for a win-win approach. As you can see from the comments herein, Ethiopians are united than ever against poverty and for the dam.
Regards
I don’t buy the idea of making Egypt and Sudan share the cost of this mega dam and get them in to some sort of ownership. It is in our territory and it should be financed by the Ethiopian people and we will get paid in kind when the revenue comes from exporting power to countries like Sudan or Egypt themselves. Why we want to call a problem from the get go. History taught us very well that Egypt never wanted peace to prevail in Ethiopia becuase if we are in peace, it/she knows that we would raise the question of fair equity of the Nile. As to me better to beg, borrow, tax to finance it. It is guaranteed that this ‘baby’ will be a cash cow once it is complete. Oh one more thing, kibur PM, please do not seek help from the Egyptian water engineers…you know the consequences!
God Bless Ethiopia and her people.
Abiy, USA
We don’t need war. But Meles is being very arrogant to declare that he is the one to decide. He made war on badme. Now, people are being diverted from challenging Meles. We don’t need more dams we just need more ports like Assab. Meles did harm us by blocking us out of the sea. Now he is creating artificial wars. Egypt and Sudan share the Nile peacefully. The only problem is that Ethiopia is led by a few copts. The time will come when things will change and the Ethiopian Muslims will finally become a peaceful neighbor to Egypt.
I think the people and gov’t of ethiopia have afull right to undergo any development activites on nile that can improve the livelihood of its citzen without compromizing basin countries.For equitable utilization of the resource six basin countries are already signed an agreement,but two nations especialy Egypt refuse to reach on agreement. This shows that the Egyptians are still thinking by the minds of European colonizers.Please,Think as Contemporary peoples that can rationalize things. We Ethiopians have great respect for Egyptian peoples,but if things are not going in the right direction we opt to repeat the Victory on Italian Agressors that prouds black peoples around the globe. So think 100 times on it before decision.
As a major contributor to the Nile water, Ethiopia has unshakable right for the use of substantial chunk! We do not need a blessing from the Egyptians or any body else. Viva Ethiopia and go ahead and develop your nation.
Agreed that Ethiopia deserves more rights to the Nile (as do the other countries). But there must be a way to apportion these waters constructively and fairly so that everyone gains. I don’t think it makes sense to say “they made us suffer so we’ll do the same.” I also don’t think it makes sense to follow in sunken footsteps. IE: make sure the dam construction is done with the right kind of environmental controls. Take appropriate time instead rushing through out of some kind of political vengeance.
Fully 86% of the water that Egypt consumes annually originates from the Blue Nile River, which flows from Lake Tana in Ethiopia, while the remainder comes from the White Nile, which flows from Lake Victoria in Uganda. The rivers join in Khartoum, Sudan, and then flow on to Egypt. Water rights to the Nile have become an important issue between all ten countries in the Nile River Basin. Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan are the most powerful countries in the basin, but Eritrea, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic of Congo are all vying for rights to the Nile’s waters. Until recently, there was no agreed-upon regime governing the actions of these countries, and no integrated plan for optimum use and development of the waters.
Over the past fifty years there have been numerous attempts by countries in the basin to discuss water rights. Egypt, however thinks it is the most powerful country in the region and hence generally pursued its water policies even in the face of disagreement from its neighbors.
For instance, Egypt went ahead with construction of the Aswan High Dam from 1964-1971 without Ethiopia’s approval. Although the dam irrigated a substantial amount of land, provided electricity and water, and created Lake Nasser, environmental critics point out that it also blocked the normal flow of the Nile, changing the character of the river both up- and downstream. The dam prevented the nourishment of agricultural lands farther down the river, prevented sediment from recharging the subsiding Nile delta, and destroyed the river’s fishing industry. In addition, vegetation in Lake Nasser has grown rapidly, resulting in clogged irrigation channels, and creating stagnant water that has become a breeding ground for disease-bearing insects and invertebrates. Also, hydrologists have estimated that each year the reservoir loses a staggering 15 cubic kilometers (9.3 cubic miles) of water to evaporation from Lake Nasser.
We Ethiopian should not pave the way for ownership to Egyptian. Those bad guyes are very arogant and barbarian. we suffered a lot and it is enough. This project may give a last long stability for both of us or The Egyptian leader shrink their county and people to un nessessary desaster. we never be afraid of Egyptian cause we have truth and we never think the Egyptian should die due to starvation because we know the price of starvation very well.
Egypt can get involved by bringing in its know how and capital to build the dams and intesnive agriculture. Ethiopia has large area of virgin land that can feed the population of both Egypt and Ethiopia. Greed, contempt and talk of war does no one any good. Ethiopia may be poor to stand against Egypt for now, but it has to feed its growing population. It can’t beg for food all the time. Egypt also needs Nile and Ethiopia should understand that. Surely, both need to work together. The media should refrain from creating a hype around this issue as well. Africa is already bleeding and no body benefits from any kind of war.
Egypt can’t afford to have 85 million fat people on the desert land. 2/3 of the population is redundant — so Egyptians have to reduce their population artificially, or else, mother nature [GOD] will do it for them.
Why do we fear to use what belongs to us we are not taking any thing from no one so
viva go for it and as a citizen we will do what ever is necessary and stand for it.
We will pay what ever is necessary to bring this dream of ours true.
And don’t forget we’ve been doing this since when.
We love Ethiopia
That being said, dams don’t have the best environmental record. Especially Ethiopia’s dams… what about Gibe?
we had been denied the access to our own wealth although millions of Ethiopians were dieing of famine.Here we come……
At a time when Japan is hit with nuclear crisis, us and china are polluting the air at alarming rate and politicians and law-makers are looking for any available method to use renewable energy, the int’l community has to encourage Ethiopia for its renewable energy initiatives.
Nile and the relationship of its riparian countries have attracted my attention for the last 3 years. I couldn’t find any logical reason for Egypt to be so defiant against the upper riparian countries interest. They, just like Egypt, have the right to use the river in a way it is not going to feed their people and make life better. Even tough Egypt so dependent on the flow of water that comes from Ethiopian highland for its survival, it has to realize that to try to bind those nations to unfair natural resource distribution is worthless. Be it today or tomorrow, they will go ahead use it.
Let alone for NILE we have been fighting for Badme ……Nobody will stop us from creating HISTORY…..repeating ADWA VICTROY in its other form …
GOD BLESS ETHIOPIA
It is is the ideal example of unfair world;being “a mother of the River ” Ethiopia is denied to get benefit out of it …..
What a paradox ….