BY HENOK SEIFU MERID
Ethiopia from the genesis has been the torch bearer of freedom among its fellow African states. This has been witnessed as Ethiopia remained the only Independent State during the time of European colonialism after successfully crushing the imperialist Italian troops at the battle of Adwa in 1896. As a result, Adwa became a turning point in the struggle against colonialism during the 20th century. It was adopted by the subaltern freedom fighters of the rest of Africans, Caribbean’s, African Americans and Asians, in their fighting against imperialism.
Adwa has revealed the wider possibility that Africans have an ability to crush the yoke of European colonialism. Europeans had been using various pretexts such as “White Men’s Burden” to “enlighten” the “dark continent”, to justify the ‘importance’ of colonialism. And, by taking a good lesson from Ethiopia wider anti-colonial struggles started to flourish in most parts of Africa aiming to bring emancipation from the tyranny of colonialism.
In Africa, during colonial times, many of the colonizers have been signing treaties among themselves. By the same token the Brits were known to have made various treaties to secure their interest within the Nile Basin. In order to secure their sphere of influence over the Nile Basin, the Brits have signed treaties with Italians, Belgians and also with their Egyptian client elites. The Brits calculating their annual water flow to their cotton farm in Egypt signed treaties that favor Egyptian interest.
In the mid-19th century, Egypt under the leadership of Mohammad Ali and his grandson Khedive Ismael Pasha has punched above its weight while attempting to control the source of the Nile, and faced humiliating defeats in Ethiopian soil. The over ambitious determination of Egyptian elites to control the source of the Nile continued even after Egypt failed under the colony of Britain in 1882.
In 1929 in order to unruffled the popular unrest elicited by Egyptian nationalists, the Britain on the behalf of its East African colonies exchanged official letters with Egyptian elites. According to the treaty of 1929 Great Britain and Egypt agreed that Egypt would take all the waters of the Nile except the 4 BCM to be retained in the Sudan, further Egypt would supervise all water-related activities in the entire basin from source to mouth. While Britain recognized the “historical” and “natural” rights of Egypt with respect to the waters of the Nile, This treaty was done without consulting the sovereign state of Ethiopia which was member of the League of Nations, and contributing the Lion’s share of the Nile Basin (almost 86 percent).
And, even in the late 1950s Egypt and Sudan signed another Agreement to Fully Utilize the Nile Waters, which allocated 55.5 and 18.5 BCM of the Nile waters to Egypt and Sudan, respectively, with 10 BCM of a total utilizable flow of 84 BCM lost to evaporation and seepage. Egypt and Sudan alone established their exclusive “full utilization” rights. The upstream offer for cooperation was ignored; this was evidenced as Ethiopia’s offer for cooperation was turned down.
Ethiopia has been denouncing the two downstream states making such treaties without inviting or consulting any upstream states, and issued official letters protesting against such act. And, in 1960s most of the newly liberated East African states adopted what was known as the ‘“Nyerere Doctrine of Treaty Succession”, claiming any colonial treaty by the colonial master on their behalf will be no more valid.
Claiming the thorny rhetoric’s of historic right and prior appropriation downstream states (Egypt and Sudan) still claim the unjust colonial treaties of 1929 and 1959. In doing so, they are trying to utilize the Nile Basin unilaterally without giving any sorts of recognition to other riparian states. Conversely, Ethiopia has been opposing such hegemonic intent of the two downstream states as it has been calling for the application of “equitable and reasonable” utilization of the Basin.
In the past, Ethiopia has tried to commence various hydraulic projects; however Egypt was successful in blocking possible financial sources from regional and international financial institutions. And, Egypt has remained as a bigger hindrance for Ethiopia to pursue those envisaged projects. But in the early 21st century Ethiopia recorded remarkable economic growth and become able to undertake unilateral projects fully covered by the Government of Ethiopia. Starting from Tekeze in 2009, Tana Beles in 2010, and Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in 2011, Ethiopia commenced those hydroelectric dam projects to alleviate the acute power shortage in the country, despite the intrigue to halt these projects by Egypt.
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is a flagship project that has been contested since the genesis. And, the Government and people of Ethiopia are deeply committed to accomplish the project by making it as an issue of national security and a matter of sovereignty. As a result, the project has been able to create a greater mass mobility in the modern Ethiopian history, by creating a sense of unity among the nation.
In terms of regional power, the GERD seems to have created a power shift in the Basin which was known to be heavily in favor of the two downstream states namely Egypt and the Sudan. Ethiopia had remained latent in the process of reshaping the power dynamics of the Nile Basin, despite of internal predicaments. Ethiopia the nemesis of colonial legacies as witnessed by the victory of Adwa, today it is deeply committed to give an end to neo colonial intents orchestrated by Egypt within Nile Basin. No matter how long and breath it takes we will witness the power shift in favor of all riparian states.
Production of edible oil by three manufacturing companies is on a promising state for moving towards import substitution for oil. Similarly, bumper harvest is expected from irrigated lowland wheat farms across the country.
The whole purpose of duty free importation of food is to meet the needs of the public at all levels. Any sabotage in the supply chain of imported foods can frustrate the entire objective of the austerity measure and therefore needs closer monitoring and follow up not only by the Ministry of trade and Industry but also by all stakeholders including the consumer societies.
The negative experience that the government has encountered in the production and distribution of cement and the resulting false price tags on this product should not be repeated in the distribution of food products like oil. There are thousands of tons of oil either imported or produced in the country. Despite such efforts prices for edible oil has continued to increase unabated. This is a dangerous trend not only on consumers but the entire economy.
In a couple of months, the main rainy season will set in and some level of food gap could be created. This would mean that necessary preparations should be made within fixed period of time for shortlisting potential importers with less need for bureaucratic red tape. Besides warehouses and logistics facilities are to be put in place before the food items are imported.
Duty free importation of basic food items will enable the country to effectively absorb food insecurity shockwaves that could introduce hyperinflation in the national economy.
It is also useful to involve consumer cooperatives and produces cooperatives across the country into the entire system to exploit their vast experience with the public in distributing basic consumer items including essential food products.
On the other hand, the public should also have the chance to comment on the mode of distribution of the commodities and allowed to provide constructive ideas on how distribution of the food items is to be conducted to ascertain equity and transparency.
The Ethiopian Herald 21 April 2021
