Monday, June 03, 2013

Nile Dam Report Inadequate, Lacks Detail, Say Egyptian President Morsi

Nile dam report inadequate, lacks detail: President Morsi

Ahram Online, Sunday 2 Jun 2013

The committee studying the impact of the Ethiopian dam recommends further studies of its impact

The official spokesperson for the Egyptian presidency announced on Sunday that President Morsi had held a meeting with the Egyptian team participating in the trilateral international committee studying the effects of a controversial planned Nile dam on Egypt and Sudan.

Ethiopia announced Tuesday it will begin diverting the course of the Blue Nile, one of the Nile River’s two major tributaries, as part of its project to build the Renaissance Dam.

The majority of Nile water that reaches Egypt and Sudan originates in the Blue Nile.

The technical committee, which was comprised of members from all three countries as well as international experts, was formed in May 2012 to study the impact of the dam on Sudan and Egypt, which are downstream of Ethiopia.

According to the presidential spokesman, the report did not clarify in detail the positive or negative impacts of the dam.

The report, according to the spokesman, recommended further social and economic studies into the dam’s impact, as well as further study of the environmental impact of the dam and its potential safety.

Morsi has commissioned government officials to provide a detailed study of the topic, including the recommendations of the committee’s report, the spokesman said.

The president also stressed the importance of acting quickly, in order to handle the situation before Ethiopia proceeds further in the dam construction process.

Morsi will hold meetings Monday with various Egyptian political figures, as well as the Cabinet, in order to discuss the latest developments and ways forward.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/72986.aspx


On the Renaissance Dam

Ahmed Mahmoud, Saturday 1 Jun 2013

Ethiopia's decision to divert the Blue Nile could be a defining moment that pushes Egypt to embrace genuine African unity

I had had enough of talk about politics, polarisation and media tirades among different political groups in Egypt that go unchecked or pay no heed to media codes of ethics aimed to rein in these distortions. So I decided to withdraw and not participate in these discussions that destroy more than they build.

Today, news emerged that Blue Nile waters in Ethiopia will be diverted, one day after the return of Egypt’s president from an extraordinary summit discussing problems on the African continent. This triggered a new stream of “griping” about what will happen to Egypt when the Nile is diverted and possible droughts ensue, and how the incumbent regime is to blame. Some even said Ethiopia would not have taken such action if it wasn’t for Egypt’s current weakness — vulnerability they believe is caused by Muslim Brotherhood rule.

I decided to not be involved in this drama and searched for a report I had read some time ago about the Nile water issue. The report was published after the conference on “Prospects for cooperation and integration among the Nile Basin States: Opportunities and challenges” on 25-26 May 2010.

It enlightened me on the issue; most notably that earthquakes are frequent in Ethiopia, especially in the Affar Triangle, along the active African fault line that divides Ethiopia in half forming two plates.

The tectonic plates are pushing further apart, which makes earthquakes measuring more than 5.0 on the Richter scale frequent, as are cracks in Ethiopian rocks that cause rock slides. This has increased the number of fault lines that are encouraged by heavy rainfall, slopes and a layer of silt under boulders that help them to slide, like in the Tigray region in northern Ethiopia.

Among Nile Basin countries, Ethiopia is the most deprived of water although it is the main contributor to Nile water, and downstream countries have nothing to do with this. It is because Ethiopia’s terrain is not suitable for major dams to store water, irrespective of the technology used. Nonetheless, Ethiopia is best suited among Nile Basin countries for constructing electricity generating projects that could supply all Nile Basin countries.

But despite this immense potential for generating hydroelectricity, some 88 per cent of the population — according to World Bank figures — is without electricity. Even those who have electricity suffer from repeated power outages.

According to World Bank figures, each citizen’s share in electricity consumption in 2007 came to about 25 KWh per year, while the average consumption of a middle class individual is 500 KWh per year.

The US Bureau of Reclamation carried out an extensive study of the Blue Nile in 1953 and 1963 and identified 26 locations to construct multi-purpose dams along the Blue Nile and its main tributaries. Ethiopia is trying to construct some of these.

The Ethiopian government faces immense challenges in trying to provide enough energy to meet the needs of its people and to support economic growth. Its plan is to increase hydroelectric output fivefold over the next five years at a capacity of 3,125 MW. Currently, there are five more power generation sites under construction; two of them were actually inaugurated but they quickly came to a halt because of geological and technical issues.

In summary, Ethiopia is suffering a great deal and needs a helping hand. Because we ignored our ties to these vital states Ethiopia has turned to the US to assist its renaissance, although I have doubts about genuine US interest in the renaissance of Ethiopia or any developing country.

Second, building the Renaissance Dam could be very risky for Ethiopia despite the benefits. Should we leave our Ethiopian brothers to take the risk or should we study the issue more diligently instead of demanding an aggressive response?

I strongly believe this is a defining moment that should push us to change our policies towards Africa, and seek genuine African unity instead of empty flimsy slogans that we have adopted in the past. Perhaps that way we would all survive together a fate that none of us want or could survive alone.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/72874.aspx


Experts differ on impact of Ethiopia dam move on Egypt

Ahram Online, Tuesday 28 May 2013

While Egyptian officials say Ethiopia's diversion of Blue Nile will not impact country's access to Nile water, some local experts disagree, describing potential effect on Egypt as 'hugely negative'

Reactions on the part of Egyptian government officials, diplomats and experts varied regarding Ethiopia's decision to divert the course of the Blue Nile – one of the Nile River’s two major tributaries – as part of its Renaissance Dam project.

On Tuesday, the Egyptian presidency announced that ongoing construction work on the dam by the Ethiopian government would not adversely impact Egypt's annual allotment of Nile water.

The planned dam has been a source of concern for the Egyptian government, amid sensitivities about its possible effect on the volumes of water that will reach Egypt if the project is completed.

According to the state-run National Planning Institute, Egypt will require an additional 21 billion cubic metres of water per year by 2050 – on top of its current annual quota of 55 billion metres – to meet the needs of a projected population of some 150 million.

In a Tuesday statement, Egypt's irrigation ministry said that Egypt would "not accept" any project that has a negative impact on Nile water flow.

The ministry added, however, that Ethiopia's diversion of the Blue Nile would not stop the river flow, stressing that Tuesday's development in Ethiopia simply constituted an "engineering procedure."

According to the ministry, the Egyptian government is currently awaiting a final report by a joint committee – including Egyptian, Sudanese and Ethiopian representatives – on the impact of the planned dam. The report is expected within days.

Egypt's ambassador in Addis Ababa Mohamed Idris, for his part, said that Ethiopia's intention to divert the Blue Nile had been known among Egyptian officialdom since November.

Ethiopia formally began the project on Tuesday to coincide with the country's national day celebrations, Idris said in televised comments.

He went on to stress that Egypt would continue to receive its full quota of Nile water despite the launch of the Ethiopian project.

Hani Raslan, on the other hand, head of the Sudan and Nile Basin desk at the Cairo-based Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies, asserted that the Ethiopian dam project would have a "hugely negative" impact on Egypt.

Raslan went on to accuse Egypt's government – especially Irrigation Minister Mohamed Bahaa El-Din – of downplaying the project's potentially negative impact.

"They have hypnotised Egyptian society, making the issue appear much smaller than its repercussions will be," he said.

Raslan called on Prime Minister Hisham Qandil to take "urgent steps" to contain the crisis, including the prosecution of those who he said were responsible for "neglecting Egypt's national security."

An informed government official told Ahram Online that that Addis Ababa was offering "reassurances" that it would be "sensitive" to Egyptian concerns and would "try to accommodate" Cairo's demand that it fill the planned dam's reservoir only gradually, so as to ensure that the effect on Egypt's annual share of Nile water would not be too abrupt.

On Tuesday, Sudanese Ambassador to Egypt Kamal Hassan stated that Egypt and Sudan may call for intervention by the Arab League in response to the Ethiopian move.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/72570.aspx

No comments: