Ethiopia Dam Historic Accord Signing Ceremony kicks off in Khartoum

The signing ceremony of the Renaissance Dam historic accord between the Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia has just started today in Khartoum.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt and Ethiopia Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalgn arrived in Khartoum on Monday, March 23 to attend the ceremony and sign the agreement.

In addition, the president of South Sudan Salva Kiir, Uganda’s Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, African Union Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma and Arab League Secretary General Nabil Elaraby are among the officials attending the signing of the tripartite agreement on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Mutaz Musa, Chairman of the Ministerial Board for the Nile Basin States Initiative-cum-Minister of Water Resources and Electricity, has described the document of the declaration of principles on cooperation between the three countries on the Renaissance Dam as a prelude for cooperation and the implementation of the joint sustainable development projects between the three of them.

Minister, Mutaz, has pointed out that the document was the result of industrious work, based on dialogue and consultation.

According to water experts the signing of the document by the three heads of state, will result in cooperation and coordination in the first phase of the filling of the Dam Lake and exchange of information among the three countries.

They also added that the completion of the two remaining studies, as recommended by international experts, will put in place solutions for any negative impacts that could be produced by the dam.