Dear Egyptian authorities and the members of the Arab League,
‘Egypt is the gift of the Nile‘! This quote, often attributed to the Greek historian Herodotus, hides the fact that 86% of the Nile waters come from Ethiopia. Indeed, the various kingdoms in Egypt owed their survival to the annual flooding of the Nile and the resulting depositing of fertile silt. We are all very well aware of the scientific fact that the river Nile’s flow created present-day Egypt. The Nile River is also mentioned in many religious scriptures, including the Bible, that it’s a life-giving riverand that the Nile river is the only river that flows to the north.
According to the Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA) signed and agreed upon by all riparian nations of the Nile Basin, there is no harm caused by building a dam on the route of the Nile as long as it is constructed using customary principles of international water law. All eleven countries have the right to build dams in line with the principle of equitable and reasonable utilization, the obligation not to cause significant harm, and the principle of protection and conservation of the river’s ecosystem.
The agreement does not allow signatories to divert or stop the flowing of the Nile River, and actually, it is not possible to stop the flow of the river because of risks of flooding another country. Egypt and Sudan had built several dams long ago without changing the route according to the Nile river’s treaty and without anyone’s permission or influence. Therefore, Ethiopia is respecting the principle of reasonable and equitable use of the waters and international laws exercising its rights by building a dam that can boost the country’s economy and improve the social condition of the people.
Dear Egyptian authorities,
Members of the Arab League and the rest of the world, you can’t impose practices contrary to the existing agreement signed and verified by all the eleven nations regarding the utilization of the river Nile. You can’t continue repeating the same lies over and over to the whole world. The liar might forget the truth and begin to believe his lie.
The history of the blue and the white Nile is very well known,which might be what’s bothering Egypt, as both the rivers are becoming white, and not blue anymore. It would have been much easier and less effortless if Egypt had agreed and shared the benefits of this great Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Egypt might not be interested in electricity, but we know Egypt’s interest in the silt.
Egypt can still deal well with Ethiopia and gain as much silt as possible. Ethiopia and the rest of Africa will also appreciate if this conflict can be settled through mechanisms on the continent. The time of colonialism and the world’s superpowers ended long before demolishing the Berlin Wall.
It’s time for the rest of the world to believe in Africa. It’s time to wake up and accomplish a brighter future for the continent and its people as we have a lot of work to be done.
