Visitors included ministers of water from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Sudan, South Sudan, and Ethiopia, and journalists from riparian countries. Ethiopian Water and Energy Minister Habtamu Itefa and GERD project manager Kifle Horo briefed the delegates on the dam’s construction and operational status.
Addressing attendees at the Nile Basin countries’ Ministerial Council meeting, held as part of the Nile Day celebrations, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Hani Sewilam accused Addis Ababa of attempting to legitimise the controversial project.
He warned that such actions reinforce unilateralism and undermine cooperative frameworks intended to manage the Nile’s resources collectively.
Sewilam amplified Egypt’s long-standing concerns about the erosion of regional consensus, stressing that Nile Day should serve as a platform for genuine cooperation rather than as a political tool.
Nile Day is organised by the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) to discuss mechanisms to optimise the use of Nile water.
Sewilam reiterated that Egypt suspended its participation in NBI technical activities in 2010 following “deviations from the cooperative principles” that had originally guided the initiative.
Cairo has long opposed the NBI Cooperative Framework Agreement, arguing that it enables upstream countries to implement major projects such as GERD without consulting downstream states.
“Egypt is one of the most water-scarce countries in the world and our reliance on the Nile is absolute. We cannot afford to ignore actions that disrupt regional cooperation and threaten our fundamental right to life and livelihood,” said Sewilam.
He warned that unilateral projects undertaken without proper consultation, environmental impact assessments or legally binding agreements violate international law and risk destabilising the region.
“Egypt respects the right of all riparian states to pursue development and actively supports their growth and progress. In return, we seek recognition and protection of our fundamental right to life,” he said.
The dam’s construction and its impact on Egypt’s share of Nile water has been the subject of a decade-long crisis. Between 2020 and 2024, Ethiopia unilaterally completed the five-phase filling of the dam, bringing two turbines into operation, despite the absence of an agreement with downstream nations.
In December 2023, Cairo announced the end of the GERD negotiation track due to Ethiopia’s persistent rejection of proposed technical and legal solutions.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 27 February, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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