Irrigation min: Egypt keen on consulting with Ethiopia over GERD

CAIRO – 24 December 2017: Egypt is keen on continuing consultation with Ethiopia to find a solution for the crisis of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mohamed Abdel-Ati said on Sunday.

During his visit to an aqueduct bridge in Qena governorate, the Minister added that Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will head to Addis Ababa to resume negotiations with his Ethiopian counterpart over the GERD, asserting that Egypt is taking this issue seriously.

Earlier, Shoukry stated, in an interview, that Egypt is only aimed at having the relationship it shares with both Ethiopia and Sudan established on mutual trust and cooperation, and therefore could serve the common interests between the three countries.

Shoukry stressed that all concerned parties must be equal on the negotiation table under international law, and that Egyptian interests must be taken seriously into consideration.

Egypt has approved the report prepared by PRL Consulting on the guidelines that should be followed when conducting studies on the effects of the dam; however, Ethiopia and Sudan rejected the findings of the report, crippling the continuation of the studies necessary for the establishment of the dam.

Egypt did not halt technical studies on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), unlike what is indicated by some rumors circulating in the media, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mohamed Abdel-Ati told African, Arab and foreign ambassadors in a meeting on Thursday.