More than two decades after the launch of the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI), in 1999, aimed at attaining sustainable socioeconomic development by ensuring fair use and shared benefits from the common water resources of the Nile Basin, tensions remain high as upstream and downstream countries grapple over rights to the Nile river’s life-sustaining flow. The NBI initiative was the collective work of nine countries that share the Nile River, including the downstream countries, Egypt, Sudan, and upstream countries, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with Eritrea participating as an observer. In May 2010, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, and Tanzania signed a Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA) as part of the NBI. The agreement called for the replacement of the 1923 convention, which allocated 55.5 billion cubic meters of Nile water annually to Egypt and 18.5 billion cubic meters to Sudan, and required six signatories for it to be put into action. Egypt and Sudan were given one year to sign the CFA, which both countries refused to do, expressing strong opposition. Their refusal stemmed from concerns that the agreement threatens Egypt’s access to crucial…
Egypt and Sudan Defend Water Rights Against Upstream Countries
October 19, 2024
By Nadine Tag
Journalist
