Agreement on use of Nile waters a win-win for all Basin countries

The Kenya Maritime Authority officials during a crackdown in Lake Victoria on December 8, 2022. [James Omoro, Standard]

Countries in the Nile Basin that have hitherto been unable to use the Nile waters could start doing so soon. This follows an agreement signed by Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Rwanda. Burundi is yet to sign the agreement. The Nile basin is made up of 11 countries; Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan, Kenya Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, Eritrea and DR Congo.

An agreement signed by colonial powers in 1929 gave Egypt the sole right to use the waters of the Nile, whose twin origin is in Lake Victoria (White Nile) in East Africa and Lake Tana (Blue Nile) in Ethiopia.

This agreement might have made sense then, but not today, a time when water scarcity occasioned by the vagaries of climate change threaten not just human existence, but peace in most countries.

In 2021, for instance, Egypt threatened to take drastic action if Ethiopia did not stop plans to build the $5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam using the waters of the Nile.

The dam targets to generate over 6,400 megawatts of electricity for Ethiopia. Egypt and Sudan were opposed to these plans because the Ethiopian government did not seek their approval as countries dependent on the Nile waters.

It is absurd that countries around Lake Victoria; countries whose rivers pour into the lake cannot use its waters without upsetting the 1929 agreement. The latest agreement therefore precludes any hostile reactions as long as the Nile Basin countries use the water in a sustainable way advantageous to all the 11 countries.

However, the need to use the Nile waters prudently cannot be overemphasised. Growing human populations and destruction of forests and water towers, resulting in climate change mean that water is becoming rare every passing day.

The answer to this threat is active engagement in climate change mitigation efforts by all countries within the Nile Basin Initiative. These efforts include planting of more trees and the protection of water catchment areas. The Nile must never be allowed to dry up. Burundi should do the needful and append its signature to the new agreement quickly because Egypt has demonstrated willingness to sign.