Ethiopia has ignored Egypt’s warnings on the importance of reaching a comprehensive, binding and legal agreement on filling and operating the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).
Ethiopia’s Minister of Water, Irrigation, and Energy Sileshi Bekele announced that the GERD construction process is proceeding as planned.
According to Ethiopia’s official news agency (ENA), Bekele headed a delegation and visited the dam’s construction site on Monday where he held discussions with contractors, consultants, board members and employers on the progress made in the construction process.
“The support of the Ethiopians at home and abroad for the Renaissance Dam is at its best,” Bekele noted.
The African Union-sponsored talks between Cairo, Addis Ababa and Khartoum over the operation and filling of the mega-dam have faltered and were stalled in January.
Also, the legislative authority in Egypt has been working to approve a new law that would meet the challenges of decreasing per capita share of water and high rates of water pollution and reusing agricultural drainage water and groundwater.
This comes as part of its efforts to overcome the shortage of its water resources, and in light of an expected crisis caused by the GERD.
Addis Ababa refuses to legalize any agreement reached, which binds it to specific measures to alleviate the drought.
Bekele’s remarks came only one day after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi reiterated his rejection of any measure or action that would violate Egypt’s rights to Nile waters.
Sisi’s statements were made during his meeting with the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission Moussa Faki in Cairo on Sunday.
Faki stressed the importance of continuing coordination to resolve the dam dispute and reach a fair and balanced agreement.
