Nile River Basin – Case Study

1. Nile River Basin – Case Study Elaine B. Darby CE 397 Fall 2005

2. The Basin Nile Sudd Swamp BlueNile White Nile

3. Basin Population • Ten Riparian States • Egypt • Sudan • Ethiopia • Uganda • Rwanda • Tanzania • Kenya • D.R. Congo • Eritrea • Burundi

4. Issues in the Nile Basin • Ethiopia • Generates 85% water reaching Egypt’s Aswah Dam • Second most populated riparian state • “The Single most important strategic interest is striving to attain food security in a chronically famine-prone region…and all scenarios [involve] more intense use of the western Nile watershed” Waterbury • Egypt • 96% of population live in Nile Delta/Basin • Entirely dependent on Nile waters – Only 4% from underground reserves • Considered the most powerful riparian state in basin • Sudan • 60% of Land Mass in Basin • Sudd Swamp – Evap loss of 50% of all Water in White Nile • Civil war • Historically always sided with Egypt in Nile Issues

5. Unique Issues to Nile Basin • Historic precedence • Colonial and Egyptian control • Egypt and Northern Sudan do not contribute to water generation in the Nile • Majority of the riparian states became independent nations since the 1960’s • Political and economic basis weak

6. International Agreements • 1899 Anglo-Egyptian • No water withdrawn upstream of Egypt without Egyptian and British consent • 1929 – Egyptian and British Agreement • British represented Kenya, Tanzania and Sudan • 93% water of Nile allocated to Egypt, 7% to Sudan • All upstream projects approved by Egypt • 1959 – Egypt and Sudan • 75% to Egypt, 25% to Sudan • Rejected by all of the other riparian states when they became independent

7. Water Allocation in the Basin

8. Riparian States Interests • Status Quo • Egypt • Uganda • New Allocations • Ethiopia • Sudan • Eritrea • Indifferent • Kenya, Tanzania, Congo, Rwanda, Burundi

9. How do you allocate the water in the Nile?

10. Beaumont’s Proposal50/50 Historical/Generation Proposed Allocation

11. Brichier-Colomba (1996) 33% weight to each factor Population of Riparian’s country in BasinRiparian's Area of BasinAverage amount of water used

12. What factors do you think should considered for allocations in the Nile Basin?

13. Waterbury’s CriteriaEqual Weighting for each factor • The proportion of water flowing across a riparian's border to the total discharge of the water course • The proportion of the ripairan's total population living in the basin • The total amount of irrigable land that could be farmed with watercourse water without extra-basin transfers • The amount of alternative, utilizable water available in aquifers, regionally appropriate rainfall and stored water (deductions) • A basin needs per cap allocation to protect life and basic health • An allocation necessary to protect existing wetland and nature's "use rights"

14. What’s Happening in the Basin?

15. Recent History of Cooperation • 1992 – Council of Ministers of Water Affairs (Nile-COM) – all ten riparian states represented • 1995 – Nile River Basin Action Plan – develop a co-operative framework for management of the Nile – endorsed by all

16. Nile Basin Initiative • Goal: To achieve sustainable socioeconomic development through the equitable utilization of, and benefit from the common resources • Objectives: • Develop water resources in a sustainable and equitable way to ensure prosperity, security and peace for all its people • To ensure efficient water management and optimal use • To ensure cooperation and joint action between states • To target poverty eradication and promote economic integration • To ensure the program results in a move from planning to action

17. Recent Cooperation – cont… • 1997 World Bank agrees to play a lead role in coordinating external finances • 1997 – Egypt announces (unilaterally) New Nile Valley Development • 1998 Shared Vision Plan of NBI – developed • 1999 Approved list of priority projects/Nile Basin Initiative formally established (legal status for NBI)

18. New Valley – South Egypt Development Plan • 1997 – New Valley Plan Announced • Add approx. 49 million acres of irrigated lands • New Canal to provide water from the Nile • Strongly opposed by Ethiopian government

19. Recent Developments, cont. • 2001 – Sub-Basin agreements between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia • Agreement to build dams and expand irrigation within Ethiopia with the plan to sell power to Sudan and Egypt • Sept. 28, 2005 – Largest ever dam to be built in Ethiopia at Kara Dobe on the Awash River with Sudan and Egypt providing financial support

20. Nile Basin Initiatives • 2001 Shared Vision Plans formulated • 2002 – 2005 Goals and Funding plans approved • 2005 Applied Training Programs begin

21. Questions for Discussion • Peter Beaumont, proposes a water allocation scheme to fit the “equitable and reasonable” call in the 1997 UN Convention on a 50% generation/50% historical split. Do you feel this is applicable to the Nile River Basin? (Reference pages 486 – 488 and pages 491 – 494). • In contrast to the Egyptian’s Century Storage Scheme of 1946 the Nile Basin Initiative did not start with specific water projects, but rather education, development of skilled personnel and inclusiveness of all stakeholders. Will this work? What do you think will be the primary factors in achieving development in a reasonable time frame? Or is the lack of specific projects in the NBI causing individual countries to move forward with building projects?