Sunday, July 07, 2013

Sudan Supports Construction of Renaissance Dam

Sudan supports construction of Renaissance Dam: Minister

Ahram Online and MENA, Saturday 6 Jul 2013

Sudan's agriculture and irrigation minister backs Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam, asserting it will not negatively impact downstream Nile Basin countries

Sudanese Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Abdelhalim Almutaafie has announced his country supports the construction of Ethiopia's planned $4.2 billion hydro-electric Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile.

The minister told The Ethiopian Herald, an Ethiopian newspaper, that the dam is considered a "model for development" in the region.

The first findings of the three-country technical committee, made up of Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt to assess the impact of the dam contruction on affected countries, largely anticipated "positive" effects, according to Almutaafie.

Almutaafie pointed out that the dam would benefit downstream countries in delivering them sustainable amounts of water, free from silt.

Sudan has tried to relay the dam's benefits to Egypt after the first announcement of the construction almost a month ago stoked fears that Egypt's share of Nile water would be lowered considerably.

The minister urged that the construction of the dam proceed in the "spirit of cooperation" and "mutual benefit."

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/75861.aspx

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