- Egypt’s unilateral proposal an incursion to Ethiopia’s sovereignty
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is a sovereign matter that requires no country’s approval except Ethiopia, say scholars while lambasting Egypt’s recent statement and unilateral proposal as hindrance to trilateral negotiation and mutual benefits.
Their remarks came following some reports of Egyptian media outlets quoting Egyptian president as saying his country would not have allowed Ethiopia to launch the dam construction, had Egypt not been hit by Arab Spring. Later, President Al-Sisi refuted his statement.
The scholars also hold Cairo responsible for the deadlock on the negotiation of the dam filing.
Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt have been holding talks quite a while now regarding the technicality of the dam with tangible negotiation yet to be produced. The latest ministerial meeting also failed to produce an agreement with Ethiopia squarely rejecting Egypt’s unilateral proposal regarding dam filing and management.
Ethiopian Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy Eng. Sileshi Bekele told a press conference on Wednesday that the trilateral negotiation held in Cairo did not break the deadlock concerning dam filing as Egypt demands minimum annual release of 40 billion cubic meters of water from the GERD, which is 5 billion cubic meter higher than what Ethiopia suggests.
The minister also rejected Egypt’s proposal that Cairo has a representative or an expert at the dam site which Eng. Seleshi said is against Ethiopian sovereignty. He also said that Ethiopia remains resolved to negotiations indicating that tripartite meeting would be held in Sudan shortly.
Ethiopia will present scientific proposal in the upcoming tripartite meeting, according to Eng. Sileshi.
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is the unilateral matter which aims to connect the staggering number of population who still remain off the grid without causing significant harm to the Nile downstream countries, says Fekahmed Negash, executive director of the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO)
Ethiopia requires no country’s permission and will to construct a dam inside its territories. International water laws do also grant the country a right to develop its resources without inflicting significant harm to other countries.
No country has the right to stop the unstoppable dam, he notes. It was Ethiopia that out of self motivation, approached the downstream countries to discuss matters regarding the dam technicality, underscores Fekahmed adding that the country continues to stick its inclusive approach by maintaining positions in trilateral talks.
There have been some confrontational statements from Egyptian side to tarnish the true image of the dam in many ways; Ethiopia has to proactively work on promoting the true facts of the dam by telling the world on the necessity of the dam and the causes behind it.
The first phase of the dam filing can be carried out in two years time when the annual flow of the river is good, however, since Ethiopia seeks to boost the strong relation in the region, it has come up with a plan to fill the dam within 5 to 7 years.
Endale Nigusse, Director of School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Civil Service University for his part said that countries can make misleading statements to ease their internal tension. And recent claims and increasing wrong rhetoric on Ethiopia’s flagship project is part of these attempts.
“Ethiopia has kept very moderate position and has not faltered whenit comes to the tripartite talks while Egypt in many ways continues proving to be hindering the talks by switching positions and deliberately coming with different interest.”
What Ethiopia is doing regarding the tripartite negotiation is very amicable. The dam is 100 percent the unilateral decision that falls on Ethiopia. But this does not mean the country can hurt the interest of the country, Endale adds.
It is reckless that Egypt kept on prolonging the negotiation. This eventually hits back the interest of Cairo. The way Addis Ababa is handling the matter is very objective and wise, he adds.
Ethiopia underscored the efforts of Ethiopia for an engagement based on good faith and a sincere interest for cooperation, underscores Eng. Seleshi.
According to him, Nile as the main water resource is also a matter of survival for the country emphasizing the need to reinforce the existing platforms of cooperation to reach an understanding that serves the equal rights of the three countries Accordingly, Ethiopia will continue to follow a cooperative approach that ensures its right and protects the interest of neighboring populations.
The Minister indicated the trilateral dialogue between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt on the GERD will enhance the right of all Nile Riparian States to utilize the shared water resource. In concluding his remarks, the Minister stated the trilateral engagements since the commencement of the construction of the GERD are successful and created an opportunity to bridge differences between the three countries.
The 4 billion USD DAM with a generation capacity of over 6,ooo MW was launched in 2011 and is designed to address Ethiopia’s growing energy demand. The first two turbines will commence power generation by 2021.
The Ethiopian Herald September 20/2019
BY DESTA GEBREHIWOT
