The damming of the Nile in Ethiopia scares the Egyptians

The drainage basin of the Nile covers about a tenth of the African continent and extends over seven countries with a population of over a quarter of a billion inhabitants. The agreement that gave Egypt 85% of the Nile water is now being tested

Since the cornerstone was laid for the "Renaissance" dam on the Nile in Ethiopia, Egypt responded with aggression that included threats of war, and other threats based on agreements imposed on African countries, first in 1929 and then in 1959. These "agreements" were signed between the colonial authorities - the British - and Egypt and Sudan.

According to the agreements, 15% of the Nile water will be used by Sudan and 85% by Egypt. The countries where the Nile flows, or where the sources of water (most of which were under British rule) were not allocated water. Ethiopia was not involved in the agreement even though most of the water (85%) comes from its territory.
After the East African countries gained independence, they began to think of ways to utilize the river water that flows in their territory, thus provoking Egyptian opposition. According to the Egyptians, by 2020 they will need 55 billion cubic meters each year. According to the agreement that was "revised" in 1959, Egypt "deserves" 55 billion cubic meters and Sudan 18 billion cubic meters, that is, almost 90% of all the water that flows in the river.

The drainage basin of the Nile covers about a tenth of the African continent and extends over seven countries with a population of over a quarter of a billion inhabitants. It is clear that with the development of countries, the demand for more water increases. Following the demand and in order to regulate the distribution of water, a committee was established in which representatives from all countries sit, but until today the Egyptians have been busy opposing and rejecting every proposal that comes up on the agenda.
While emphasizing "Egypt's historical rights to the Nile water", Egyptian spokesmen demand that "Ethiopia respect agreements from the colonial period". On the other hand, the Ethiopians do not see the need to respect agreements from the colonial period and certainly do not recognize the "historical rights". Furthermore, the Ethiopians note the "disrespect" and lack of support given by the Egyptians to the Ethiopians over the centuries, starting with "remote control" by the leadership of the Ethiopian Church in Alexandria, through failed conquest attempts and the blocking of aid attempts in the years - 1970 - 1980, a period in which millions died Ethiopians are starving.
Accusations of supporting guerrilla forces from Eritrea are added to all of these. All attempts at occupation were repelled and therefore even today when the Egyptians threaten to use force, the threats are rejected with no small amount of contempt. The wide rift between the two nations can be understood from the words of an Ethiopian journalist who writes that "for many years the Egyptians ate from our apples, now we are building a fence around the orchard and "historical rights" will not justify the continued plundering" the same journalist continues and clarifies: "Logic requires that agreements signed between Britain and Egypt will refer to the Thames water (and not to the Nile water)."

In Ethiopia there is mostly water, but there is no transportation and distribution system, so large areas are subject to the mercy of weather and periods of drought that harm the population. In order to overcome periods of drought and to enable stable agriculture, the Ethiopians began building a huge dam on the Nile without watching for agreements and summaries that would not come.
The dam located on the Blue Nile will collect water in a huge reservoir and from the reservoir the water will be distributed throughout the country. A power plant will be built at the foot of the dam to generate electricity. Already today, agreements are being drawn up for the purchase of electricity by Kenya and South Sudan. The Egyptian opposition to the dam stems mainly from the reason that during the period when the reservoir will be filled (several years) almost no water will flow in the Blue Nile, meaning that the amount of water that will reach Egypt will be about 15% of the current amount.
The solution proposed and rejected by the Egyptians was that the reservoir filling time would be extended and Ethiopia would allow water to flow into the channel to be added to the flow in the (White) Nile and reduce the shortage. Considering the fact that since the construction of the Aswan Dam, the agricultural environment along the Nile has been severely damaged, and considering that as a result of a lack of alluvial material there is a constant subsidence of the alluvial fan (delta) of the Nile, then the concern of the Egyptians is understandable.

In the past I have already written that the lack of water will be a significant factor in future frictions, but I am not an expert in international relations and bringing up the problem comes from my intention to shed light on the environmental side.

It is also clear that when governments and authorities are faced with the question of where to direct the little water - for the human inhabitants or for the natural environment, then the tendency will be for the people, meaning damage to the natural environment will be the result of any conflict over water. The same is true in the case of the Nile, already after the construction of the Aswan Dam, the damage began. The "Renaissance" dam, which will be tens of meters larger, will cause corresponding damages. Stopping the drift from reaching the sea means continued subsidence of the delta. Less erosion means less sand accumulating on the beaches. Less silt means less nutrients for fish, which means serious damage to the beaches and a lack of nutrients for the flora and fauna in the Mediterranean, perhaps this is a good enough reason why the debate that is currently taking place between Egypt and Ethiopia is changing direction.
Perhaps it is appropriate that all the countries that live on the shores of the Mediterranean should be involved in the distribution of the Nile water and the way in which the water and its power will be used. Which gives new validity to the saying that the time has come that instead of controlling the environment for the sake of the human population, there will be control of the human population for the sake of the environment!

see also:

• Egyptians are thirsty, and not only for democracy
• Assaf Rosenthal - Impressions from South Sudan
• Egypt launched a photography satellite