BY HAFTU GEBREZGABIHER
Ethiopia will never succumb to colonialism and any form of neocolonialism whether they are Westerners and their Egyptian partners stated a group of Ethiopian Campaigners goes by the name Ethiopia Prevails on twitter referring to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).
The United States should stop the military support to Egypt and emboldening. The Horn of Africa needs peace, security and stability. Violence can only breed violence and peace by peaceful means, underlined another Ethiopian in the Diaspora, Fisseha Yacob (PhD)
He further stated that the goal for Ethiopians was to fill the dam within three years, but we (Ethiopians) agreed to fill the dam from five to seven years, depending on the desire of Sudan and Egypt after the parties negotiations and the desire to promote equitable utilization of the water resources. The question now is does someone thinks Ethiopia construct the dam only to make happy Egypt and Sudan? “Just waiting for the second round of the dam filling”
Ethiopia is responsible for 85 percent of the Nile (Abay) and half of our population doesn’t have electricity, this dam isn’t just a dam for Ethiopia it is the future for Africa, another group name of the Ethiopian Diaspora Mehal Meda stated.
The dam is ours; the water is ours; how often do we tell them (lower riparian states) that we are building the dam on our own resources and that we do not need anyone’s permission? We do not always tell the story of what our ancestors did, but we begin to take pride in the history we have made. The dam is a great pride for all of us. It is all Ethiopian citizen’s dam, they underscored.
In Ethiopia, GERD will be the major source of electricity and prosperity. The data show that the country has the potential to produce 50,000 MW energy from water resources. Yet, it has only exploited 3,822 MW in 2018, approximately 7.6 % of its potential, according to official reports.
“GERD does harm neither Egypt nor Sudan; instead, it will bring enormous benefits for the regional integration and development for the East and North African regions.”
The multipurpose use of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, particularly for the sustainable energy-water-food-ecosystem service is all about life and death for all Ethiopians. We Ethiopians are close to realizing our dream of building the Great Dam by overcoming the Nile. We are on the verge of making history for future generations. Now the conspiracy of Egypt and Sudan will never stop us from completing our dam.
The project of GRED inclusively takes great considerations for the values of ecosystem services integration with the dam and its sector that strongly benefits Sudan and Egypt. The GERD dam affections the terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem, well-prepared plan that considers institutional cooperation and sectoral integration to use for multipurpose function and its sustainability. Ethiopia has inherent right to utilize its own natural resource. Ethiopia will have nothing to stop it from using its resources, stated Natnael Mekonen from Europe.
In the same line, the Minister of Water, Irrigation, and Energy of Ethiopia Dr.Eng. Seleshi Bekele formally invited the Republic of Sudan and the Arab Republic of Egypt to nominate dam operators to exchange data before the second filling of the GERD commences in the upcoming rainy seasons in Ethiopia, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In the letters addressed to Minister of Water Affairs of Sudan and Egypt, the Minster of Water Affairs of Ethiopia invited the two countries to nominate focal persons/ dam operators to exchange data among the three countries with regards to the second-year filling which will take place in July and August 2021.
According to the letters, the invitation was based on the consensus that was reached on the filling schedule formulated by the National Independent Scientific Research Group (NISRG) of the three countries along with the period of the filling in July and August and it may continue in September depending on the hydrology.
Stating the progress of the GERD construction and the approaching rainy seasons in Ethiopia, where the filling is scheduled, the Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy of Ethiopia underlined the need to work together on practical and important communication arrangements.
Nominating focal persons soon will expedite appropriate information exchange arrangements and confidence-building measures among the tripartite until the conclusion of the GERD negotiation under the auspices of the African Union, the letters read.
The letter underlined the importance of immediate conclusion of agreement on the rules and guidelines on first filling in accordance with Article 5a of the Declaration of Principle that was signed by the three countries in 2015 will offer a good opportunity to build confidence and trust among the parties.
Attaching information on bottom outlet testing of the GERD, the letters expressed Ethiopia’s keenness to host the first focal persons/ dam operators meeting physically in Addis Ababa or virtually.
The Ethiopian Herald 11 April 2021
