Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia announced today agreement on the most important points of disagreement over the Renaissance Dam, while US President Donald Trump expressed his "optimism" that a final agreement on the dam will be reached.
A joint statement issued by the three countries indicated that the ministers reached an agreement on a schedule that includes a plan for filling the Renaissance Dam in stages, the mechanism that includes procedures related to dealing with droughts and protracted droughts and scarce years during filling, and the mechanism that includes procedures for dealing with droughts and protracted droughts And scarce years during operation.
The ministers also agreed on the importance of completing negotiations and reaching an agreement on the mechanism of operating the Renaissance Dam during normal hydrological conditions, the coordination mechanism to monitor and follow up on the implementation of the agreement, the exchange of data and information, and the dispute settlement mechanism, as well as addressing issues of dam safety and completing studies on the environmental and social impacts of the Renaissance Dam.
The ministers assigned the technical and legal committees to continue the meetings in Washington in order to finalize the agreement, provided that the ministers of foreign affairs and water resources of the three countries meet again in Washington on February 12 and 13, to approve the final version of the agreement in preparation for signing it at the end of February.
A statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry stated that the agreement comes after rounds of arduous and arduous negotiations between the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Water Resources in Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia under the auspices of the United States of America and the participation of the World Bank, the most recent of which was a four-day round of negotiations in Washington.
On the other hand, US President Donald Trump on Friday expressed his "optimism" that a final agreement will be reached on the Renaissance Dam, on the Blue Nile.
In a telephone conversation with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abi Ahmed, Trump expressed confidence that "an agreement on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is imminent and will be in the interest of all parties concerned," according to the White House.
The Ethiopian Ambassador to the United States, Fitsum Arega, wrote on Twitter: “Talks are continuing on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan, which started on January 28 for the fourth consecutive day.”
The Renaissance Dam project raised Egypt's concerns because the river secures 90 percent of its water supplies. The river is 1.8 km long and 145 meters high.
The $ 4.2 billion (€ 3.8 billion) dam will start generating electric power in the late 2020s and reach its maximum operating capacity by 2022. It will then be the largest power plant in Africa with a capacity of 6,000 megawatts.