Egypt has completed the construction work of a massive dam body it is building on the Rufiji River in Tanzania, in a move considered as a message addressed to Ethiopia,
Cairo also started preparations for retaining water to fill the reservoir of the giant Julius Nyerere Hydropower Project (JNHPP).
The construction project has the full support of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly affirmed that Sisi gave orders on maintaining high-level quality implementation as the project represents a dream for the people of Tanzania.
An Egyptian consortium made of Arab Contractors and El-Sewedy Electric celebrated finishing the construction of the main body of the Julius Nyere Dam on Rufiji.
The construction of the main dam lasted over 687 days since the diversion of the river on November 18, 2020, in the presence of senior officials of the Tanzania Electric Supply Company Limited, owner of the project.
Tanzania is one of the 11 Nile Basin countries.
Building the dam comes as a response to the accusations Ethiopia leveled against Egypt for allegedly inhibiting development projects in the Basin.
“The project confirms Egypt’s cooperation with the Nile Basin countries, and refutes Ethiopia's accusations,” former Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mahmmoud Abu Zeid told Asharq Al-Awsat.
“Egypt only rejects the lack of coordination and projects that affect the course of the Nile,” Abu Zeid added.
According to the ex-minister, Egypt is keen on achieving integration through joint development projects.
Moreover, Egypt is looking to seize the opportunity found in annual rainfall that is wasted in most Nile Basin countries.
Egyptian Minister of Housing Assem al-Gazzar confirmed that with the completion of the construction of the main dam, the Egyptian consortium has begun preparing to start holding the waters of the Rufiji River behind the dam.
This is scheduled to last for about two months (according to flood forecasts for the current year).
According to Gazzar, three giant water drainage gates have been established on three levels in the body of the dam, which will control the provision of the minimum amount of water to maintain the riverine environment below the dam.
