Deal struck on Nile water use
By Zephania Ubwani, Sunday Observer (Tanzania)
NEW YORK, May 02, 2004 –The ten countries within the river basin have agreed to share the Nile water resources equitably within the framework of cooperation.
Meraji Msuya, the Executive Secretary of the Uganda-based Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) said here on Thursday that the first project within the basin development framework will be launched in Khartoum, Sudan at the end of this month.
Other projects earmarked will be launched in the coming few years as ten member states of the Initiative to consolidate confidence building in equitable sharing and sustainable utilisation of water resources in the world’s longest river.
Msuya revealed this when briefing a session of the just-concluded 12th meeting of the United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD-12) on initiatives taken to exploit water resources in the often conflict-ridden Nile Basin.
He said recent reports on the conflicts on water use among the ten riparian states were over, adding that all countries have agreed on a cooperative framework and benefit sharing of the Nile waters for the socio-economic development of the region.
“These reports may have been exaggerated by the media. But as far as NBi is concerned, the Nile waters have no boundaries and will be shared by all riparian states on equitable basis” he explained.
Msuya told water resources experts, government officials and other stakeholders that NBI, which was formally inaugurated in Dar es Salaam in February 1999, has launched two major programmes to facilitate implementation of various projects.
These are Shared Vision Programme (SVP) intended to build trust and enabling environment for project implementation across the basin and the Strategic Action Programme (SAP) for actual implementation of the project.
“The two programmes are complementary and parallel to each other. They provide a framework for cooperative development for socio-economic development of the entire basin,” the official added.
He outlined several projects earmarked for implementation. These include communications and awareness to be handled by NBI Secretariat in Entebbe, Uganda, and the environment project to be launched later this month and which will be coordinated by Sudan.
Tanzania, one of the ten countries in NBI, will coordinate hydropower trade in the basin while agriculture will be coordinated by Kenya, water resources develoment (Ethiiopia), applied training (Egypt) and benefit sharing by Uganda.
He said NBI has already been given a legal status in Uganda to institutionalise it and that a similar process is expected to take place in other countries.
According to the Executive Secretary, two coordinating offices for NBI have recently been established in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and Kigali, Rwanda in efforts to facilitate execution of earmarked projects.
On conflict resolution, Msuya said each NBI member state has agreed to share information on projects it intends to launch with other riparian states and, if possible, undertake joint studies to ensure sustainable utilisation of water.
However, he could not say if a USD 27 million project to supply water to Kahama and Shinyanga and some irrigation and hydropower projects initiated recently in Egypt and Ethiopia had the blessing of other riparian states.
NBI is made up of Tanzania, Kenya,Uganda, Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Burundi and DR Congo. Eritrea has enjoyed an observer status since then and is expected to formally join the Initiative soon.
The catchment area of the 6,695 kilometre long Nile River covers nearly ten per cent of Africa’s land surface. By 1995 when establishment of NBI was initiated, the basin had a population of140 million people which is expected to double by 2025.