Chinese Premier Li and Ethiopian Prime Minister Desalegn talk after a meeting at Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa
United States Assistant Secretary of StAmbassador Linda Thomas-Greenfieldate for African Affairs Linda Thomas-Greenfield said that Ethiopia and Egypt needed to resume negotiations immediately about the Grand Renaissance Dam which Egypt concern that the dam will affect its share of Nile water.
“We knew that some talks had taken place and we encourage them to continue to have more talks so that they can find a solution that benefits both sides,” Thomas-Greenfield said.
This is the first time U.S government has expressed concern over the increasingly deteriorating relationships between Ethiopia and Egypt since the conflict broke out between the two country in 2011 when Ethiopia began
of construction of the dam
The Grand Renaissance Dam, currently under construction,It is planned to finish construction of the dam after three years, it will be Africa's largest hydropower dam, standing some 170m (558ft) tall, with sixteen turbines, two of which would generate 375mw of power each.
At a cost of $4.7bn it will also be hugely expensive - mostly funded by Ethiopian bonds and taxpayers.
The dam is located in the Benishangul region, a vast, arid land on the border with Sudan, some 900km north-west of the capital Addis Ababa,
Egypt has repeatedly expressed concern that the dam will affect its share of Nile water. Ethiopia insists this will not happen. Months of negotiations between the two countries have so far failed to reach a resolution.
Ethiopia has set its eyes on electricity exportation as a new source of revenue ,once the hydropower projects start operating, Ethiopia could earn up to $2 billion a year from the export of power.
Ethiopian Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a meeting Thursday with the Yemeni president in Sanaa that Ethiopia is “committed to genuine negotiations with Egypt”
Adhanom added that his country’s government was “always prepared to follow the path of equitable and reasonable utilisation of water resources of the Nile for the realisation of shared benefits and a win-win approach.”
Egypt's Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy told Al-Ahram daily newspaper that Egypt has repeatedly called for negotiations with Ethiopia over the dam, but did not receive a real response.
Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan in 2013 formed a tripartite technical committee to study the possible impact of the dam and to try to generate consensus on the project.
The Egyptian experts in commission issued a report insisting there was a lack of necessary studies on the dam's construction.
It warned its potential collapse would have disastrous effects on Nile Basin countries and claimed there had been insufficient studies on the dam's environmental and social impact.
Most Nile river water originates in Ethiopia . However, Egypt receives the 55 billion cubic metres , followed by Sudan as per agreements signed in 1929 and 1959, which guaranteed Egypt 55.5 billion cubic meters of Nile water every year out of the estimated 84 billion cubic meters produced annually.
The Blue Nile joins the White Nile in the Sudanese capital Khartoum to form the Nile, which then flows through Egypt. Nile basin including 11 countries with the river travelling about 6,695 km from headwaters in Rwanda and Burundi to the Mediterranean.
According to the state-run National Planning Institute,Egypt will need an additional 21 billion cubic meters of water per year by 2050 over its current quota of 55 billion meters, to meet the water needs of a projected population of 150 million people
Egypt fears that the dam will reduce its annual share of Nile water,while Sudan voiced its support for the dam last December.
Egypt is aware that some 30% of the Ethiopian dam is completed. It is still unclear what's Egypt's next step will be.
“We knew that some talks had taken place and we encourage them to continue to have more talks so that they can find a solution that benefits both sides,” Thomas-Greenfield said.
This is the first time U.S government has expressed concern over the increasingly deteriorating relationships between Ethiopia and Egypt since the conflict broke out between the two country in 2011 when Ethiopia began
of construction of the dam
The Grand Renaissance Dam, currently under construction,It is planned to finish construction of the dam after three years, it will be Africa's largest hydropower dam, standing some 170m (558ft) tall, with sixteen turbines, two of which would generate 375mw of power each.
At a cost of $4.7bn it will also be hugely expensive - mostly funded by Ethiopian bonds and taxpayers.
The dam is located in the Benishangul region, a vast, arid land on the border with Sudan, some 900km north-west of the capital Addis Ababa,
Egypt has repeatedly expressed concern that the dam will affect its share of Nile water. Ethiopia insists this will not happen. Months of negotiations between the two countries have so far failed to reach a resolution.
Ethiopia has set its eyes on electricity exportation as a new source of revenue ,once the hydropower projects start operating, Ethiopia could earn up to $2 billion a year from the export of power.
Ethiopian Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a meeting Thursday with the Yemeni president in Sanaa that Ethiopia is “committed to genuine negotiations with Egypt”
Adhanom added that his country’s government was “always prepared to follow the path of equitable and reasonable utilisation of water resources of the Nile for the realisation of shared benefits and a win-win approach.”
Egypt's Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy told Al-Ahram daily newspaper that Egypt has repeatedly called for negotiations with Ethiopia over the dam, but did not receive a real response.
Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan in 2013 formed a tripartite technical committee to study the possible impact of the dam and to try to generate consensus on the project.
The Egyptian experts in commission issued a report insisting there was a lack of necessary studies on the dam's construction.
It warned its potential collapse would have disastrous effects on Nile Basin countries and claimed there had been insufficient studies on the dam's environmental and social impact.
Most Nile river water originates in Ethiopia . However, Egypt receives the 55 billion cubic metres , followed by Sudan as per agreements signed in 1929 and 1959, which guaranteed Egypt 55.5 billion cubic meters of Nile water every year out of the estimated 84 billion cubic meters produced annually.
The Blue Nile joins the White Nile in the Sudanese capital Khartoum to form the Nile, which then flows through Egypt. Nile basin including 11 countries with the river travelling about 6,695 km from headwaters in Rwanda and Burundi to the Mediterranean.
According to the state-run National Planning Institute,Egypt will need an additional 21 billion cubic meters of water per year by 2050 over its current quota of 55 billion meters, to meet the water needs of a projected population of 150 million people
Egypt fears that the dam will reduce its annual share of Nile water,while Sudan voiced its support for the dam last December.
Egypt is aware that some 30% of the Ethiopian dam is completed. It is still unclear what's Egypt's next step will be.
Sources
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