The Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) is a partnership among the
Nile
The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...
riparian states that “seeks to develop the river in a cooperative manner, share substantial socioeconomic benefits, and promote regional peace and security”.
The NBI began with a dialogue among the riparian states that resulted in a shared vision objective “to achieve sustainable socioeconomic development through the equitable utilization of, and benefit from, the common
Nile Basin
The Nile Basin is the part of Africa drained by the Nile River and its tributaries.
Besides being the second largest hydrographic basin in Africa, the Nile Basin is effectively the most notable drainage basin on the continent. It covers approxi ...
water resources."
It was formally launched in February 1999
by the water ministers of nine countries that share the river:
Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
,
Sudan
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
,
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
,
Uganda
Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
,
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
,
Tanzania
Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...
,
Burundi
Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million peop ...
,
Rwanda
Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...
, the
Democratic Republic of Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...
(DRC), as well as
Eritrea
Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...
as an observer. From its beginning the Nile Basin Initiative has been supported by the
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...
and by other external partners. The World Bank has a mandate to support the work of the NBI, as lead development partner and as administrator of the multi-donor Nile Basin Trust Fund. One of the partners is the "Nile Basin Discourse", which describes itself as "a civil society network of organisations seeking to achieve positive influence over the development of projects and programmes under the Nile Basin Initiative".
In May 2010, five upstream states signed a Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA) to seek more water from the River Nile and establish water sharing rights between the NBI states — a move strongly opposed by Egypt and Sudan.
Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania were original signatories with Burundi signing in February 2011. The agreement was subsequently ratified by Ethiopia, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Burundi between 2013 and 2023, with South Sudan ratifying the CFA on 8 July 2024.
The DRC abstained, while Egypt and Sudan refused to sign on after decrying the CFA as an attempt to diminish their shares of Nile water. Despite these objections, the CFA officially became legally binding over the NBI states on 13 October 2024.
Institutional framework
The NBI institutional framework consists of three key institutions:
* The Nile Council of Ministers of Water Affairs provides policy guidance and makes decisions. Its Chairpersonship is on a rotational one-year basis. The host of the regular council meetings is traditionally elected as the Chair for the forthcoming year. Since June 2010 the chair is
Asfaw Dingamo, Ethiopia’s Minister of Water Resources, elected at the 18th regular meeting in Addis Ababa in June 2010. He was preceded by Egypt’s Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation,
Mohamed Nasr el Din Allam (2009–10), elected at the 17th regular meeting in Alexandria in July 2009, as well as
Jose Endundu, Minister Of Environment of the Democratic Republic of Congo (2008–09) and Minister Of Water and Environment of Uganda,
Maria Mutagamba (2007–2008). The council holds regular annual meetings as well as extraordinary meetings. Extraordinary meetings were held in May 2009 in Kinshasa and in April 2010 in Sharm el-Sheikh.
* The NBI Technical Advisory Committee, established in 1998. It is made up of senior civil servants and provides technical advice and assistance to the Council of Ministers. The committee is made up of one representative from each riparian country and one alternate. It meets two to three times a year.
*The NBI Secretariat, established in 1999 provides administrative support to the Council of Ministers and the Technical Advisory Committee. It is based in Entebbe, Uganda, headed by an Executive Director. The position is on a rotational basis for a 2-year term. The current Executive Director, Teferra Beyene Asfaw from Ethiopia, assumed office in September 2012.
Two subsidiary programs are managed by the Eastern Nile Regional Technical Office (ENTRO), which is based in Addis Ababa, and the NELSAP Coordinating Unit (NELSAP-CU), which is based in Kigali, Rwanda. In addition, various projects under the Share Vision Program have regional project management units located in Cairo (applied training), Addis Ababa (water resources planning), Dar es-Salaam (power trade) and Nairobi (agriculture).
Main programs
The NBI consists of three main programs: The Shared Vision Program, the Eastern Nile Subsidiary Action Program and the Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program.
The Shared Vision Program
The Shared Vision Program (SVP), “a Basin-wide program that focuses on building institutions, sharing data and information, providing training and creating avenues for dialogue and region-wide networks needed for joint problem-solving, collaborative development, and developing multi-sector and multi-country programs of investment to develop water resources in a sustainable way.”
It is financed through grants and aims to foster trust to build an enabling environment for investment. In 2010 it included the following eight projects mainly focused on regional training:
* an Applied Training Project that provides training in
Integrated Water Resources Management;
* a Confidence-Building and Stakeholder Involvement Project that "is working to increase the involvement of a broad range of stakeholders—from policy and decision makers, to small business men and women, to fishermen and farmers, to religious and youth groups";
* a Regional Power Trade Project;
* a Transboundary Environmental Action Project that "provides training in environmental management and monitoring, water quality monitoring, and wetlands conservation";
* an Efficient Water Use for Agriculture Project;
* a Water Resources Management Project;
* a Socio-economic and Benefits Sharing Project that builds a "network of professionals from economic planning and research institutions, technical experts from both the public and private sectors, academics, sociologists, and representatives from civic groups and NGOs";
* a Shared Vision Coordination Project.
The Eastern Nile Subsidiary Action Program
The Eastern Nile Subsidiary Action Program (ENSAP) "seeks to develop the water resources of the
Eastern Nile Basin in a sustainable and equitable way to ensure prosperity, security and peace for all its peoples". It is managed by the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO) based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is grouped into fast-track investments and more complex, longer-term multi-purpose track investments.
Fast-track investments
This track included four projects in early 2008:
The Regional Watershed Management Project aims to establish sustainable
management of watersheds on the
Tekeze,
Atbara,
Mareb,
Abbay/
Blue Nile
The Blue Nile is a river originating at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. It travels for approximately through Ethiopia and Sudan. Along with the White Nile, it is one of the two major Tributary, tributaries of the Nile and supplies about 85.6% of the wa ...
and the
Baro/
Akobo/
Sobat rivers in Ethiopia and Sudan. The initial project sites identified include
Lake Nasser
Lake Nasser ( ', ) is a large reservoir (water), reservoir in southern Egypt and northern Sudan. It was created by the construction of the Aswan Dam, Aswan High Dam and is one of the List of reservoirs by volume, largest man-made lakes in the wo ...
/
Nubia
Nubia (, Nobiin language, Nobiin: , ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the confluence of the Blue Nile, Blue and White Nile, White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sudan), and the Cataracts of the Nile, first cataract ...
in Egypt;
Jamma,
Reb, and
Gumara sub-basins, as well as watershed management in
Tana-
Beles as part of the Tana-Beles Integrated Water Resources Development Project in Ethiopia; and the lower Atbara,
Ingessena Mountains and areas around
Dinder National Park in Sudan.
The Ethiopia Power Export Project (formerly called the Ethiopia-Sudan Internconnection Project) will connect the power grids of Ethiopia and Sudan to facilitate cross-border
energy trade and optimize existing and planned generation capacity. It aims to overcome the severe electricity shortage in both countries. The World Bank is providing a US$41 million credit for investments in Ethiopia approved in 2007. The Government of Sudan is funding activities in Sudan.
The Regional Irrigation and Drainage Project aims to develop and expand irrigated agriculture and improve the productivity of existing agriculture through more efficient use of water. It consists of three national sub-projects:
* Egypt West
Delta
Delta commonly refers to:
* Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet
* D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta"), the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet
* River delta, at a river mouth
* Delta Air Lines, a major US carrier ...
Water Conservation and Irrigation Rehabilitation Project supported by a US$145 million loan from the World Bank approved in 2007
* Ethiopia Irrigation and Drainage Project, supported by a US$100 million World Bank subsidized credit approved in 2007, including for investments in the Reb and
Magech drainage areas in the
Amhara Region
The Amhara Region (), officially the Amhara National Regional State (), is a Regions of Ethiopia, regional state in northern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Amhara people, Amhara, Awi people, Awi, Xamir people, Xamir, Argobba people, Argobba, a ...
(Lake Tana basin).
* Sudan Upper
Atbara Irrigation Project
The Flood Preparedness and Early Warning Project, a US$4 million project approved in 2007 with an expected duration of three years, will focus on building
flood forecasting capabilities and flood emergency preparedness and response. This will include efforts to improve dissemination of
flood warning information to communities at risk, strengthen existing institutions and mechanisms to alert communities; establish community-based plans to reduce flood damages and capture environmental benefits; deliver public education programs; and develop regional and local
emergency preparedness
Emergency management (also Disaster management) is a science and a system charged with creating the framework within which communities reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with disasters. Emergency management, despite its name, does not actua ...
and response plans.
Multi-purpose track
The multi-purpose track includes a series of studies aimed at developing common analytical tools, as well as a tentative plan for coordinated investments called the Joint Multipurpose Program.
= Development of common analytical tools
=
Specific common analytical tools will be developed for the power sector, watershed management and irrigation/drainage, integrated by an overall planning model.
*The Watershed Management Cooperative Regional Assessment is considered by the World Bank to be a critical building block for determining future regional watershed investments. The study will build a shared information base from which to assess impacts of different land management interventions on a regional scale. This assessment will include a transboundary analysis of the Eastern Nile watershed system and associated livelihoods and analyze how benefits accrue across the three countries under alternative watershed management interventions.
*The Eastern Nile Power Trade Investment Project is part of the overall effort to promote regional power trade by coordinating the planning and development of power projects and transmission interconnection across the three Eastern Nile countries. This study includes an assessment of the scope and potential of an Eastern Nile power market, potential power generation options in the three countries, potential sites for transmission interconnection, and potential power trading arrangements.
*The Irrigation and Drainage Cooperative Regional Assessment includes both regional studies of irrigation and development opportunities, as well as engineering studies of specific sites. The regional study seeks to develop guidelines for selection of projects of regional interest, quantify the benefits and costs of irrigation projects from national and regional perspectives, and explore institutional and legislative reform options to harmonize the approach to rural development and facilitate regional cooperation.
*The Eastern Nile Planning Model Project is intended to help Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan identify, prepare, and implement cooperative development projects that benefit all three countries.
= Joint Multipurpose Program
=
The Joint Multipurpose Program (JMP) is a long-term program with a 25-30 year horizon that includes a coordinated set of investments to ensure the sustainable development and management of shared Eastern Nile waters, including the Abbay (
Blue Nile
The Blue Nile is a river originating at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. It travels for approximately through Ethiopia and Sudan. Along with the White Nile, it is one of the two major Tributary, tributaries of the Nile and supplies about 85.6% of the wa ...
),
Tekeze (Setit)-
Atbara,
Baro-
Akobo-
Sobat, portions of the White Nile and the Main Nile. The first set of investments under the program is likely to include:
*Watershed and environmental management, including
reforestation
Reforestation is the practice of restoring previously existing forests and woodlands that have been destroyed or damaged. The prior forest destruction might have happened through deforestation, clearcutting or wildfires. Three important purpose ...
, river bank
erosion control
Erosion control is the practice of preventing or controlling wind or water erosion in agriculture, land development, coast, coastal areas, Bank (geography), river banks and construction. Effective erosion controls handle surface runoff and are ...
, and creation of alternative livelihoods.
*Linking river and power systems through an infrastructure backbone including a regional power grid and increase capacity for water storage for
flood control
Flood management or flood control are methods used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters. Flooding can be caused by a mix of both natural processes, such as extreme weather upstream, and human changes to waterbodies and ru ...
,
hydropower
Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, ...
,
irrigation
Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...
and water conservation. Other potential benefits include improved
inland navigation
Inland navigation, inland barge transport or inland waterway transport (IWT) is a transport system allowing ships and barges to use inland waterways (such as canals, rivers and lakes). These waterways have inland ports, marinas, quays, and wharfs ...
, more productive
fisheries
Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life or, more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a., fishing grounds). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farm ...
and sufficient flows of water to maintain critical
ecosystems
An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...
.
*Enhancing agricultural production through intensified and expanded irrigated agriculture, coupled with targeted investments in
agribusiness
Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy,
in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise.
The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit ...
, marketing, and other agricultural support services. Improved watershed management would also help expand
rainwater harvesting
Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is the collection and storage of rain, rather than allowing it to run off. Rainwater is collected from a roof-like surface and redirected to a Rainwater tank, tank, cistern, deep pit (well, shaft, or borehole), Aquifer s ...
, improve
livestock
Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...
productivity, and promote fisheries development.
*Complementary investments to leverage growth and promote regional integration, such as in telecommunications, transport, industry, tourism, and credit systems.
*Establishing institutions for joint action, including innovative approaches to financing, shared information systems, and improved public communication and transparency.
The Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program
The Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program (NELSAP) “is an investment program under the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI). Its mission is to help reduce poverty, promote economic growth, and reverse
environmental degradation
Environment most often refers to:
__NOTOC__
* Natural environment, referring respectively to all living and non-living things occurring naturally and the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism ...
.” NELSAP programs fall under two broad program areas: Natural Resources Management and Development, and Power Development and Trade.
Natural Resources Management and Development
This program area includes the following projects:
*The
Kagera Transboundary Integrated Water Resources Management and Development project launched in December 2005. The project is shared between Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda.
*The Mara Transboundary Integrated Water Resources Management and Development project in the
Mara
Mara or MARA may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Mara (''Doctor Who''), an evil being in two ''Doctor Who'' serials
* Mara (She-Ra), fictional characters from the ''She-Ra and the Princesses of Power'' and ''The New Advent ...
and the
Serengeti
The Serengeti ( ) ecosystem is a geographical region in Africa, spanning the Mara and Arusha Regions of Tanzania. The protected area within the region includes approximately of land, including the Serengeti National Park and several game r ...
national parks launched effective January 2006. It is shared between Tanzania and Kenya.
*The Sio-Malaba-Malakisi Transboundary Integrated Water Resources Management and Development project shared by Kenya and Uganda focuses on promoting development and reducing conflicts between communities using water resources of the three sub basins fed from the slopes of
Mount Elgon
Mount Elgon is an extinct shield volcano on the border of Uganda and Kenya, north of Kisumu and west of Kitale. The mountain's highest point, named "Wagagai", is located entirely within Uganda. . The project was launched in January 2006.
*The
Lake Edward
Lake Edward (locally Rwitanzigye or Rweru) is one of the smaller African Great Lakes. It is located in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift, on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, ...
and
Lake Albert Fisheries Pilot Project in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, including small-scale community-level investments to improve protection of water catchment areas, build access roads, and supply drinking water and sanitation. The project was launched in June 2005 and was scheduled to be completed in 2007. The African Development Bank is providing financial support for this project.
*The Abatement of the
Water Hyacinth
''Pontederia crassipes'' (formerly ''Eichhornia crassipes''), commonly known as common water hyacinth, is an aquatic plant native to South America, naturalized throughout the world, and often invasive species, invasive outside its native rang ...
on the Kagera River Project, part of the
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropics, tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface are ...
Environmental Management Project in partnership with Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.
Power Development and Trade
This program area focuses on investment planning and preparation of major investment projects such as a Transmission Interconnection project and the Regional
Rusumo Falls Hydro-electric and Multi-purpose Project. This has involved carrying out preliminary feasibility studies and assessments.
In December 2005 the six NELSAP Ministers responsible for Electricity Affairs adopted an Indicative Power Master Plan for the region. The plan includes a set of “best evaluated” power generation options and transmission interconnection projects for the next 20 years, including social and environmental concerns.
The Regional
Rusumo Falls Hydroelectric and Multipurpose Project on the Kagera River is expected to be a
dam
A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...
with an associated
run-of-the river hydropower plant that is expected to benefit Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania. The project was identified as one of the best power options through the above-mentioned NELSAP Assessment of Power Development Options. The hydroelectric power component would have an installed capacity of approximately 60-80 megawatts. It is estimated that approximately 3,000 people would need to be resettled around the hydropower plant facility.
The NELSAP Transmission Interconnection feasibility studies include detailed design for four key transmission lines between Burundi, DRC, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, supported directly by the
African Development Bank
The African Development Bank Group (AfDB, also known as BAD in French) is a multilateral development finance institution, headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and ...
. The total cost of the regional transmission lines are about US$160 Million.
Funding
The Nile Basin Initiative is supported by contributions from the NBI countries themselves and through the support of international financial institutions – such as the
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...
, the
Global Environmental Facility and the
African Development Bank
The African Development Bank Group (AfDB, also known as BAD in French) is a multilateral development finance institution, headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and ...
– and other donors. In 2003 a World Bank-managed, multi-donor trust fund created to harmonize donor contributions. Donors that contributed through the Nile Basin Trust Fund until early 2008 include Canada, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Other donors to the NBI include Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Estonia, the EU and various UN agencies such as
UNDP
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. The UNDP emphasizes on developing local capacity towar ...
and the
FAO
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition ...
.
Until early 2008 donors have contributed over US$130 million of the original pledge of US$150 million. US$14.4 million has been contributed by the governments of the Nile Basin.
Initiative by upstream countries to form a Nile River Basin Commission
In May 2010, five upstream states signed an agreement to seek more water from the River Nile and establish water sharing rights between the NBI states — a move strongly opposed by Egypt and Sudan.
The Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA), which had been negotiated for years under the framework of the NBI, was to be open for signature for a period of one year.
[NewsDire - Ethiopian News Service:, 16 May 2010] Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania signed the agreement; Ethiopia ratified it in 2013. The DR Congo abstained from signing the agreement, while Egypt and Sudan refused to do so. An Egyptian government spokesman said in May 2010 that "Egypt will not join or sign any agreement that affects its share.
The signing of the agreement had already been planned during a Ministerial meeting in 2007, but had been delayed at the request of Egypt.
Upstream countries then decided at another Ministerial meeting in Kinshasa in May 2009 to sign the agreement without having all countries sign at the same time. However, the signing was delayed and at the next Council of Minister meeting in April 2010 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt again asked to defer the signing. The article on
water security (Article 14b) has particularly drawn objections from Egypt and Sudan. The article says that member countries would work together to ensure "not to ''significantly'' affect the water security of any other Nile Basin State." Egypt and Sudan want the article to read "Not to adversely affect the water security and current uses and rights of any other Nile Basin States" without the qualification "significantly".
A former Egyptian minister of water resources and irrigation, Mahmoud Abu-Zeid, sees the framework agreement as a positive beginning, saying that "everybody agreed to more than 95 percent of the articles". An article on the protection and conservation of the basin and its ecosystem – such as the
Sudd
The Sudd (, Nuer: Baki̱ec, Dinka: Toc) is a vast swamp in South Sudan, formed by the White Nile's '' Baḥr al-Jabal'' section. The Arabic word ' is derived from ' (), meaning "barrier" or "obstruction". The term "the sudd" has come to ref ...
in Sudan – and an article requiring "
prior informed consent
Informed consent is an applied ethics principle that a person must have sufficient information and understanding before making decisions about accepting risk. Pertinent information may include risks and benefits of treatments, alternative treatme ...
" before building new dams had also been controversial during earlier negotiations.
[AllAfrica.co]
Rift Widens as Egypt, Sudan Delay Signing Nile Basin Pact
23 February 2009 Representatives of upstream countries said they were "tired of first getting permission from Egypt before using river Nile water for any development project like irrigation", as required by a treaty signed during the colonial era between Egypt and Britain in 1929, but later on expressed support for Egypt after series of agreements negotiations and trade relations the Nile Basin countries have become closer to Egypt.
The agreement, once effective, will transform the NBI into a permanent Nile River Basin Commission.
The agreement was ratified by Ethiopia, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi, and South Sudan between 2013 and 2024.
Despite various objections, the CFA officially became legally binding over the NBI states on 13 October 2024.
See also
*
Water politics in the Nile Basin
*
United Nations Convention on the Law of Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses
References
External links
Nilebasin.org: The Nile Basin InitiativeNilebasindiscourse.org: Nile Basin Discourse websiteWorldbank.org: Map of Eastern Nile Region Worldbank.org: The Nile Basin Initiative presentation at World Bank Water Week— ''(February 2009)''.
Worldbank.org: Sustaining Water for All in a Changing Climate (2010)— ''special case study on water resources in Nigeria (pgs. 90-95)''.
{{Authority control
*
International organizations based in Africa
River regulation in Burundi
River regulation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
River regulation in Egypt
River regulation in Eritrea
River regulation in Ethiopia
River regulation in Kenya
River regulation in Rwanda
River regulation in South Sudan
River regulation in Sudan
River regulation in Tanzania
River regulation in Uganda