Top government officials from Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan began talks in Cairo on Tuesday to explore the mechanism of a proposed fund that is aimed to finance investment and development projects in the three African nations.
In May, foreign and water ministers of the three countries agreed to set up a joint investment fund in a bid to enhance ties and boost cooperation between their countries, as part of efforts to ease tensions concerning the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) under construction by Addis Ababa.
The meetings, hosted over two days by Egypt's Central Bank in Cairo, are expected to play host to "an exchange of views on the best way go forward in implementing the directives of the leaders of the three countries to open broader horizons of their relations in general, and their cooperation on economic and development issues in particular," the bank said in a statement sent to Ahram Online on Tuesday.
The May agreement was part of a breakthrough in talks over the disputed hydroelectric GERD being built by Ethiopia along its section of the Nile river, which runs through Egypt and Sudan.
Egypt fears the US$4 billion construction project, which is set to be the biggest dam in Africa, will threaten its Nile river water supply.
Ethiopia denies the detrimental impact of project, which now over 60 percent complete.
During the talks in Addis Ababa, the three countries agreed to set up an independent scientific study group with representatives from the three countries for consultation on the projected timeline for filling the dam.
They also confirmed that representatives of the three countries will meet every six months for talks, and agreed to send their reservations about the original technical report to the French consultancy firm.
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