Egypt rejects current form of Entebbe Agreement on Nile River: minister

CAIRO – 13 October 2024: Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources Hani Sweilam called Sunday on states that ratified the Entebbe Agreement to revisit their stances and resume talks on cooperation among Nile Basin countries in a way that would not cause harm to any of them.

The minister stated at a press conference, held on the sidelines of the seventh edition of Cairo Water Week, that although Egypt had launched the Nile Basin Initiative in 1999, one of the countries aimed for reaching a deal with specific countries that contradicts international norms.

Minister Sweilam asserted Egypt's rejection to all unilateral acts and non-recognition of any non-inclusive agreements, noting that the current reality in the Nile Basin is not good. That is because riparian states have been divided into three groups. One is upstream countries, the other is East Nile countries, and the third consists of the two downstream countries. As such, he lamented the absence of a unified organization that represents the Nile Basin countries.

The irrigation minister pointed out that Egypt had already established many water projects in other Nile Basin countries contributing to their sustainable development efforts. On the other hand, he stressed that Egypt had been suffering from water poverty, and would not give up a single cubic meter of water, expressing rejection to the current form of the Entebbe Agreement.

The 11 Nile Basin Countries are Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Republic of Sudan, Ethiopia, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea and Egypt. As for the six that ratified the agreement making it effective, they are Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi, South Sudan, and Ethiopia.