Water Wars

In the midst of the current protests in Egypt, few outsiders to the region are aware of another major issue that's been boiling: control of the river Nile.

Here are the facts.

The Nile, the longest river in the world at over 4,000 miles, nourishes life in 9 countries, flowing through Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, and Egypt. With the Nile crossing so many borders, one is astonished to learn that 66% of it's waters are controlled by Egypt. In fact, the Nile Water Agreement, guarantees Egypt 55.5 billion cubic meters of water, out of a total 84 billion cubic meters.

Herein lays the problem.

The Nile Agreement was signed in 1929 by Britain on behalf of it's then East African colonies (Uganda, Kenya, & Tanzania). It's evident looking back that Britain needed to strategically benefit Egypt because of shipping routes (see Suez Canal), at the expense of the millions of people along the Nile basin merely looking to harvest its waters for their livelihoods. Those upstream countries, plagued by drought, first need the consent of downstream Egypt before proceeding with any irrigation (or hydropower) projects. But Egypt (and Northern Sudan) have been unwilling to change the agreement, which the other countries understandably argue did not & does not represent their best interest, as they (with exception of Ethiopia) were under colonial rule at the time of it's signing.

Egypt's refusal to equitably share the Nile's water seems pretty audacious considering that 85% of it's flow comes from the Blue Nile, which originates in Ethiopia, with the remaining 15% of flow coming from the White Nile, which originates from Lake Victoria, whose shorelines grace Kenya, Uganda, & Tanzania. The best argument I've heard thus far in Egypt's defense, is that they do not benefit the same from seasonal rains as their sub-Saharan counterparts, making the Nile it's lifeblood.

As it stands now, the 7 upstream countries (Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, & DRC) recently met to sign a new agreement, giving Sudan and Egypt one year to answer to a more equitable sharing of the river Nile's resources.

With Southern Sudan soon gaining their independence from the North, the balance of power is expected to tilt in favor of the Nile Basin countries, who command less diplomatic clout than Egypt. Consider international donor countries who are reluctant to advance funds to Nile Basin countries for major water projects for fear of damaging relations with Egypt, all as a result of the power granted them via this Colonial-era agreement.

Lets hope the negotiations will remain peaceful and another war in Africa isn't ignited due to external puppeteering.

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