Four East African states have signed an agreement to seek more water from the River Nile – a move strongly opposed by Egypt and Sudan, BBC online reported last Friday.
Under colonial-era accords, the two countries get 90 per cent of the mighty rivers water. Upstream countries including Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Ethiopia say it is unfair and want a new deal but nothing has been agreed in 13 years of talks.
The four states signed the agreement in Entebbe, which would lead to experts determining how much water each country would be entitled to. A further three countries were represented at the meeting in Uganda, and may sign up later.
There is a danger that the split could hamper any further efforts for all nine countries involved to negotiate how the waters should be shared. Egypt says, that water is a matter of national security as its farmers are almost wholly dependent on the River and its water..
But Ethiopia, for example – the source of the Blue Nile – contributes an estimated 85 per cent of the river waters but is able to make relatively little use of its natural resource.
Egypt and Sudan say they will not sign a new deal unless they are first guaranteed an exact share of the water.
