In what could be said to be a stunning breakthrough to a fair utilization of shared resources, the Nile Basin Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA) entered a significant stage with the Republic of South Sudan ratifying the agreement on July 8, 2024. This watershed moment opens a new era of cooperation in utilizing shared resources. Trans-boundary natural resources have been sources of conflicts and confrontations among nations. The scarcity of natural resources like water and the sharp population growth have been pitting countries against each other.
The ever-increasing demand for electricity, drinking water and other development undertakings fueled by ever-expanding population is forcing nations to come up with various initiatives. Ethiopia’s Abbay Dam commonly known as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is a solid instance. But the dam is more than a project as it sends a clear signal to the world that cooperation is the way forward to ensure mutual growth. The dam that brings no significant harm however is part and parcel of Ethiopia’s longtime principle when it comes to Nile utilization.
Ethiopia’s courageous and bold leadership has made significant progress over the years in fostering regional collaboration and opening the door for fair and reasonable resource sharing.
From the ratification of the CFA to the signature of the Declaration of Principles, the country has been leading by example to the fair and equitable utilization of the longest river in the world.
In so doing, the country has been vehemently opposed to colonial treaties in the Nile which downstream nations always refer to. Though the Abbay River is a common resource, Sudan and Egypt have been the only countries to benefit from it for a long time. The two countries were declared the exclusive owners of the world’s longest river under the patronage of colonial powers, while other riparian states, such as Ethiopia, the river’s source and primary contributor, have been living in darkness due to lack of electricity.
Ethiopia’s grand dam for those even-minded countries is a textbook example of regional integration for it would connect other nations to the power grid as well. The country was the first to ratify the CFA following the establishment by the Nile Basin riparian countries of the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI).
In addition to Ethiopia, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Burundi signed the opened CFA in Entebbe, Uganda in May 2010. The other two countries Kenya and Burundi signed the CFA in their respective countries. The majority of the signatory countries ratified the document by their respective legislatures in the subsequent years. Recently, South Sudan ratified the agreement laying the ground for the enforcement of the agreement. Accordingly, the CFA is now entering into force in 60 days now that the number of countries that ratified has already reached six.
It is obvious that by bringing the agreement to force, the basin countries will know the importance and reap the fruits of cooperation aligned with their national interest to create a harmonious regional cooperation through a win-win approach.
Enforcing the CFA creates the fundamental idea that every state in the Nile Basin is entitled to use the waters of the Nile inside its borders. The implementation of the CFA would bring about significant changes that Egypt and Sudan cannot afford to ignore or undervalue. It is, therefore, in Egypt and Sudan’s best interests to join the CFA and collaborate with the other Nile riparian nations to manage, share, develop, and safeguard the Nile River Basin.
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 19 JULY 2024
