Former Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Mohamed Nasr El-Din Allam, warned against underestimating the repercussions of the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam issue, stressing that the dam being filled with water does not mean the end of the risks associated with it.
The former Egyptian Minister of Water Resources stressed that some opinions that speak of the Renaissance Dam being full and not posing a danger to Egypt, or that its water reserves can be considered a reserve for Egypt, ignore - as he described it - the main objective of the project and its potential effects on the downstream countries.
Allam added in a post on his Facebook account that the dam holds back huge quantities of water, noting that part of it is lost annually through evaporation and leakage, which is reflected in the water balance of both Egypt and Sudan, in addition to what he described as the risks of poor operation or filling in the absence of coordination between the three countries.
The former Minister of Irrigation explained that even after the dam is fully filled, it will undergo repeated cycles of storage and discharge to generate electricity, which makes the issue of continuous operation and coordination between the parties essential. He stressed that achieving stability and avoiding damage requires the signing of a clear legal agreement between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia to regulate the filling and operation.
The Egyptian minister stressed that the real solution lies in reaching a legally binding agreement that regulates the rules for filling and operating the dam in a way that preserves the interests of the basin countries.
Speaking about the water situation in Egypt, Allam said that the country had already exceeded the water poverty line more than three decades ago, explaining that the per capita share of water had declined to about 500 cubic meters per year, compared to the internationally adopted water poverty line of 1,000 cubic meters per person per year.
He pointed out that Egypt relies heavily on water reuse and also imports a significant portion of its food needs, warning that population growth will increase pressure on water resources in the coming years.
He called for finding long-term solutions to increase Egypt’s water resources in cooperation with the Nile Basin countries, considering that regional cooperation could turn the dam into a starting point for joint projects that would benefit the people of the region if the political will were available.
The Ethiopian Renaissance Dam crisis is one of the most prominent regional issues that concern Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia since the project was announced in 2011, as Cairo and Khartoum demand a legally binding agreement that regulates the filling and operation of the dam, while Addis Ababa affirms its right to exploit its water resources to generate electricity and achieve development.
Egypt is almost entirely dependent on the waters of the Nile River, at a time when it faces increasing challenges related to population growth and rising water demand, which is prompting the Egyptian government to implement water recycling projects, expand seawater desalination, and improve irrigation efficiency.
Despite multiple rounds of negotiations under African and international auspices, the three countries have not yet reached a final agreement on the rules for filling and operating the dam, while Cairo continues to stress the need to preserve its water rights and prevent any unilateral actions that may affect its water security.
