The Crisis In The Middle East

Nile nations agree on Water-Sharing without Egypt’s nod

Prelims Only | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India
Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: Nile River System

nile river

Why in the News?

A regional partnership of 10 countries announced that an agreement on the equitable use of Nile River water resources has come into effect, despite Egypt’s opposition.

Why discuss this?

  • The legal status of the “cooperative framework” was confirmed by the African Union after South Sudan joined the treaty.
  • The treaty is backed by the Nile Basin Initiative.
  • Countries Involved:
    • Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Tanzania have ratified the agreement.
    • Egypt and Sudan have refused to sign.
    • Congo abstained, while Kenya has yet to submit its ratification documents.

About Nile River:

Details
Length Approximately 6,650 km (4,130 miles), making it the longest river in the world.
Tributaries White Nile (originating from Lake Victoria in Uganda) and Blue Nile (originating from Lake Tana in Ethiopia).
Countries Traversed 11 countries: Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, DR Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Egypt.
Source
  • White Nile from Lake Victoria,
  • Blue Nile from Lake Tana.
Mouth Mediterranean Sea, forming the Nile Delta in Egypt.
Major Cities Includes Cairo, Khartoum, and Alexandria.
Key Dams
  • Aswan High Dam (Egypt), controls flooding, generates hydroelectric power, and forms Lake Nasser.
  • Built in 1970 across the Nile in Aswan, Egypt; helps in irrigation, flood control, and hydroelectric power generation but also disrupts silt flow.
Economic Importance Provides over 90% of water for Egypt and Sudan; vital for agriculture, fishing, industry, and energy production.
Disputes Between Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan over water rights, particularly due to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).
Historical Treaties
  • 1929 and 1959 Nile Water Agreements allocated water mostly to Egypt and Sudan; upstream countries seek revision.
  • Nile Basin Initiative (NBI): Established in 1999, it is a partnership among Nile Basin countries aimed at promoting cooperation, development, and sustainable management of the Nile’s resources.

 

PYQ:

[2020] Consider the following pairs:

River Flows into
1. Mekong Andaman Sea
2. Thames Irish Sea
3. Volga Caspian Sea
4. Zambezi Indian Ocean

Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 3 only

(c) 3 and 4 only

(d) 1, 2 and 4 only

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