Sudan’s water ministry says Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia agree to hold further talks this month on the resolution of their long-running dispute over Ethiopia’s huge dam on the Blue Nile called the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD)
On Sunday, all three countries held a new round of talks via video conference in the virtual presence of South African officials, as well as other international observers. The Union’s rotating chair is currently held by South Africa
Previous talks between Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia, have failed to produce an agreement on the filling and operation of the vast reservoir behind the 145-metre tall Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), a hydropower project which broke ground in 2011.
“The meeting concluded … “
that this week will be devoted to bilateral talks between the three countries, the experts, and the observers,” Sudan’s water ministry said in a statement.
Talks will pave the way this week, “for the resumption of tripartite negotiations on Sunday January 10 in the hope of concluding by the end of January”, the statement noted.
Egypt fears that Ethiopia’s dam would severely cut its water share.
Egypt depends on the Nile for about 97 per cent of its irrigation and drinking water.
Sudan on the other hand hopes the dam will help solve its flooding issues, but has also warned that millions of lives would be at “great risk” if no binding agreement was reached.
Ethiopia says the power needs of its population will be achieved using the hydroelectric power produced at the dam.
It insists that this will not affect downstream countries’ water supply.
The Nile, which the world’s longest river, is a lifeline that supplies both water and electricity to the 10 countries it traverses.
The Nile’s main tributaries, the White and Blue Niles, make a convergence at the Sudanese capital Khartoum before flowing north through Egypt to drain into the Mediterranean Sea.
