Equitable water utility indispensible for prosperity

Gemechu Tussa

The Nile is huge enough to benefit all countries along its basin if and only if it is managed and administered properly. One aspect of shared water proper management includes comprehending the rights of each country to utilize the river fairly. Fair and equitable water utilization among the Nile Basin countries is one of the crucial element for a win-win solution.

In this globalized world, it is almost impossible for a certain country to develop using shared resources unfairly while others were denied to use their shares. The only solution is to come together and invest for mutual prosperity.

Unless there is communality in equitable water usage, it is hard for the Nile Basin countries to develop. What has worked some sixty and seventy years ago has no room at this century. The only possible way for the Nile Basin countries is to stick to a win-win approach. The Nile is huge enough to entertain all the basin countries. 

It is the longest river in the world, about 6,853 kilometers long.   Recent researches indicated that the drainage basin of the Nile covers 3,254,555 square kilometers, which covers about 10 per cent of Africa. The Nile is shared by eleven countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Congo-Kinshasa, Eritrea, South Sudan, Sudan and Egypt.  

Although the Nile has two major tributaries: the White Nile and the Blue Nile, the later is the source of most of the water and silt, which begins at Lake Tana in Ethiopia and flows into Sudan and meets the White Nile near the Sudanese capital of Khartoum.

According to historical documents, Egyptian civilization and Sudanese kingdoms have been depending on the river since ancient times.  According to historical documents the Nile has been the lifeline of civilization in Egypt since the Stone Age.  The Egyptian population and all the cities rested along the Nile valley.

The silt deposits from the Nile made the Egyptian land fertile because the river overflowed its banks annually. The  Egyptians cultivated and traded wheat, flax, papyrus and other crops from the Nile.

Despite the recurring drought that resulted in a widespread starvation in Ethiopia, Egypt was nourished by water impounded in Lake Nasser. According to a report by the Strategic Foresight Group around 170 million people have been affected by droughts in 70 incidents in the last century with half a million lives lost. Of the 70 incidents of drought which took place from 1900 to 2012, fifty five incidents took place in Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya and Tanzania.

Egypt has been dominating the Nile water resources for years. As a result, countries like Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania were complaining of that. Ethiopia, the contributor of more than 85 per cent of the Nile water was the least beneficiary in those past days. 

Nile Basin countries developed an initiation to work together on the Nile River for mutual benefit and development. Ethiopia has taken the initiative to bring all these countries to a round table so as to cooperate in poverty alleviation through equitable utility of their shared resource. As a result, the Nile Basin Initiative was established. It is intended to promote peaceful cooperation among those states.

Despite various attempts to reach at a consensus among all countries sharing the Nile waters, it has become so difficult to have all these countries agree with each other given the self-interest, political, strategic, and social differences they have.

It was on the 14^th of May 2010 that Ethiopia, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda signed a new agreement on sharing the Nile water at Entebbe, which raised strong opposition from Egypt and Sudan.

The irrigation potential in the Nile basin in Ethiopia has been estimated at more than 2.2 million hectares but the irrigated area is about 23, 000 hectares. Ethiopia, being the major contributors of the Nile water has never been benefited; whereas, Egypt and Sudan have been using largely.

The socio-economic and political situation of Ethiopia was altogether altered with the overthrow of the military junta and the coming of Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) in to power in 1991, which was the basic turning point in the country’s history. 

Incredibly but truly, the economy of the country has  boosted in the past decade with a double digit economy, private and government sponsored industries like Textiles, leather factories, Medicos and pharmacies have expanded so far.

This development necessitates the development of electric power that could shoulder the fast growing economy, the boosting investment and the expanding social services.  Besides, the power consumption raised as the living standard of the people has improved.  All these persuaded the country to develop its power every time, at least 25 per cent a year.   

The country has identified poverty as its arch foe. It has been working accordingly to ensure sustainable economic development. In this regard, the country has been attempting to utilize one of its resources, the Nile River, in collaboration with other basin countries.

Ethiopia’s fast economic growth and its boosting investment need huge electricity. Developing its power is a matter of living under poverty or sustaining the fast economy. In other words, one of the most fundamental measures that the country has to take to reduce poverty   and ensure fast and sustainable economic growth is developing its   energy.

Ethiopia was never benefited in those old days. It is now working hard to ensure equitable water utility among countries in the Nile Basin.  That is why the country has been devoting in bringing all Nile Basin countries together including Sudan and Egypt for common prosperity.

The two downstream countries had doubt at the beginning. However, Sudan comprehended it soon and began to cooperate with Ethiopia. Now, Egypt also seems to cooperate after a long time diplomatic discussions.

Ethiopia doesn’t want to prosper risking others. It vividly explained that the hydropower dams built in the country could help the region as a whole.

However, various international organizations open a strong propaganda against the various hydropower dam projects in the country. 

Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, International Rivers and other organizations sponsored by some irresponsible states have been attempting to hinder the efforts for hydropower development in Ethiopia.

That was emanated from the expectation that Ethiopia finance such huge projects by itself. In fact financial constraints have remained being one of the major hindering factors to development.  But the story has altogether altered nowadays.

The Ethiopian economy has well grown in the past twenty five years. As a result, it began constructing different huge projects including the Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam on its own finance. The country still wants to strengthen regional cooperation against poverty. Its effort in establishing the Nile Basin Initiative is part and parcel of this effort. The Ethiopian government and people believe that there shouldn’t be any project in any country that could inflict harm on the others. The Nile is so huge that all countries along the basin could be benefited if there is cooperation and proper water management with the central point of faire and equitable water utilization.