Egypt says it has exhausted negotiations over Ethiopian dam
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Egypt Independent
Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Hani Sewilam says his country has exhausted negotiating options over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, without reaching an agreement with Ethiopia. He accuses Addis Ababa of failing to implement principles agreed in 2015 and rejecting a draft agreement negotiated in Washington, according to his remarks at the Egypt Forum.
Egypt has exhausted avenues for negotiations with Ethiopia over the Renaissance Dam, Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Hani Sewilam said, according to Egypt Independent. He said Cairo had done everything in its power to reach an agreement, but Ethiopia had not responded to Egyptian proposals.
At a session on national and citizen security at the Egypt Forum, attended by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Hani Sewilam recalled that Egypt signed a declaration of principles with Ethiopia and Sudan in 2015. US-sponsored negotiations, with the participation of the World Bank, produced a draft agreement on filling and operating the dam, but it was never signed by the three countries.
The main disagreement concerns the lack of binding rules for managing the dam during periods of drought, as well as data-sharing and coordination of its operation. Egypt is calling for a legally binding agreement to protect its water resources and those of Sudan, while saying it does not dispute Ethiopia’s right to generate electricity and develop.
The Renaissance Dam, built by Ethiopia on the Blue Nile since 2011, is at the heart of a dispute between the three riparian countries. Hani Sewilam accused Addis Ababa of failing to implement the commitments in the declaration of principles and of moving negotiations to formats that did not produce results.
Summary produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools, under AFREEQUE’s editorial responsibility.
