BY DANIEL ALEMAYEHU
In the present climate, the world is going through major changes and challenges. The query of holding the global power has become the sole objective of nations with super power. To this end, the question of utilizing and managing resources become one of the priorities for nations in order to capitalize the economic and political influence that they impose on other nations.
It is the fact that every nation has its own resources that the incumbent and the people work together on preserving and get the expected advantage. It is true that some countries have natural gas and oil that made them lead a lavish life style.
Some countries are blessed with natural sites that give them the opportunity for the nation to be visited by millions of tourists every year. And some other countries have minerals that can be purchased in billions of Dollars.
When the essence of such advantages come to Africa, especially the Sub- Saharan African countries, those nations with super power exert numerous pressures on African leaders under the objective not to get the advantages from their own nature gifted resources. It is usually observed that though Africa is blessed with all the resources and minerals that the whole world needs to lead the life it needs, Africa still remains as a producer and provider of resources rather than sharing the benefit.
The continent is watching others in distance when they exploit the resource. In good truth, African nations have been struggling with life under poverty. Governments and leaders of Africa have left no stone unturned to find a solution for the challenges that most African people are striving to escape. Similarly, the story of Ethiopia has no difference from those sister African nations.
In many occasions, Ethiopia is labeled as one of the resourceful nations in the African continent along with its geopolitical supremacy. The nation is fortunate with natural resources and heritages date back to many centuries. However, the country could not use its utmost effort to get the benefit from what those resources can bring.
In the eyes of the world, Ethiopia is called by a number of nicknames. For instance, Ethiopia is labeled as the origin of human being, thirteen months of sunshine, and the water tower of Africa. All these names perfectly feet the nation, but some expressions have been unfairly exaggerated and have been used to refrain the nation from progress. The main nickname that is used to weaken Ethiopia is water tower of Africa as if the country gets astonishing benefit from its lakes and rivers.
According to the recently published Bulletin of Water, Hydro-Diplomacy and Communication Forum by the Ministry of Water and Energy of Ethiopia, the nation annually gets 122 billion Cubic Meter of falling water when clustered create 12 major river basins, 11 fresh water lakes, 9 saline lakes, 4 creator lakes and over 12 major swamps or wetlands. The above figure shows that indeed the nation deserves a nickname to be called the water tower of Africa.
Unfortunately, from the 122 billion cubic meters of water that the nation gets annually, only 3 percent of it remains inside, and 97 percentof the annual runoff is taken to the neighboring countries. The bulletin also argues that facts shows that Ethiopia is a water donor to its neighbors, not a recipient. Besides, the bulletin mentions that 9 to 11 rivers discharge across Ethiopia’s borders to its neighbors.
Based on the facts entertained by the bulletin, though Ethiopia gains better water resource annually, the nation is still under a grave danger of water scarcity that has a power to affect millions of lives. This is because, and as to mentioned in the document, almost all of the water is runoff to the neighboring countries. All the nation gets is the nickname not the benefit.
Nonetheless, the water resources of the nation have contributed less to accelerate the overall economic, social and political growth of the country. Though Ethiopia has many water resources, one thing that everybody should bear in mind is that most rivers are trans-boundary which means they flow to the neighboring countries by washing off the surface soil.
Talking about resources, Ethiopia is endowed with water resources that could help the nation to win the battle of poverty that its people are struggling. That was the sole reason why the nation, by its own budget, has started to build the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) or Abbay Dam over a decade ago.
The Government and the people of Ethiopia have been generating the necessary support and budget to the biggest dam in Africa. However, the world has not accepted the effort of Ethiopia with welcoming hands, on the contrary, the nation has experienced unwanted pressures.
In relation to Abbay Dam, the government of Ethiopia has experienced a lot of unnecessary pressures from downstream countries and other international organizations who understand the objective of building the dam in a skewed way. In different occasions, those downstream nations have been caught red hand in fabricating false narrations on Ethiopia and its dam project on Blue Nile.
Without any effort on cross-checking the information from those downstream countries, the international community and organizations have acted on putting pressure on Ethiopia. The action taken by loan providers to refrain themselves from giving any loan or support to Ethiopia regarding the project could be a textbook example for the tilted judgement and false narration that made them decide not to support the country that wishes to live a better life.
The nickname of being the ‘water tower of Africa’ has done nothing to Ethiopia. If the idea of being water tower gives advantages to Ethiopia, the nation would have formed an escape route from down pressing poverty. Not only that, the nation would not have affected by drought and famine even in the present time.
The current incumbent has given due attention to finalizing the Dam’s project amid variable pressures from in and out of the country. Although the Dam project costs the nation a hell of a budget, Ethiopia cannot afford to lose the opportunity to earn the expected advantages from the over-rated water resources.
The people have also the right to get electricity when its neighbors have had long time ago. Those downstream countries frequently appeal on the dam project as if they will lose their advantages.For centuries, Ethiopia has done nothing to call for an equal share of benefit with its neighbors.
The false narration of naming the country the water tower has benefited Ethiopia nothing, on the other hand the nickname affects the progress and effort of the nation to go forth and find new ways to exploit its water resources. It is time to make sure that Ethiopia is no longer be the water tower of Africa rather the nation will be the owner of the biggest dam and hydro-power in Africa
Editor’s Note: The views entertained in this article do not necessarily reflect the stance of The Ethiopian Herald
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD TUESDAY 11 APRIL 2023
