On Tuesday, Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Hani Sweilam, stated that Cairo is closely monitoring what he described as “disruptions” by Ethiopia regarding the Nile River.
In his comments to the media, Sweilam criticized Ethiopia’s actions as sometimes unjustifiable and unscientific, noting significant issues with the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).
He pointed out that Addis Ababa continues to unilaterally fill the dam, while negotiations have proven to be mere time-consuming exercises and political cover. Sweilam questioned why Ethiopia is retaining billions of cubic meters of water without being ready to generate electricity, leading to potential evaporation losses.
Sweilam emphasized that Egypt has proposed numerous technical solutions but has consistently faced weak counterarguments from Ethiopia. He suggested that Addis Ababa lacks genuine interest in reaching an agreement. Sweilam attributed the failure of negotiations over the past 12 years to a lack of political will from Ethiopia.
When asked about the current impact of the GERD on Egypt, Sweilam noted, “We can only assess the full impact of the dam on Egypt after the completion of the filling season.”
He stressed that there is no alternative to the Nile for maintaining Egypt’s water security, asserting that Egypt cannot afford to lose even a single cubic meter of Nile water.
Sweilam also highlighted that the per capita water share in Egypt is currently about 500 cubic meters per year, with a water deficit nearing 50 percent of the available water resources in the country.
