Title PhD
Making the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam a Building Block for Cooperation: Seeking a Lasting Solution in the Eastern Nile Basin.
Research field
Public Law
Introduction
In Eastern Nile Basin countries, there is a discord over the utilization of Nile River as a result of this, it is imperative to reconcile and balance their stands and develop a cooperation framework between Ethiopia and lower riparian states using Grand Ethiopian Renaissance dam as a tool.
Abstract
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has been a source of tensions and diplomatic deadlock between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia for decades. There is a clear legal dispute and difference in the water utilizations of the Nile River in general and in particular in the ENB. Hence, lack of cooperation and inability to recognize the current reality leads Eastern Nile Basin states relations on the Grand Ethiopian Dam into full mistrust and misconception, and even moving further toward confrontation.
In this basin both water sharing and the benefit-sharing negotiation process is sometimes inclined to the zero-sum scenario. Beside this, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam issues and negotiations is not only about the filing and operation of the dam but also a legal disputes between existing treaties claim of lower riparian vice a visa with rearrangement of existing treaty by Ethiopia. Making the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam as a springboard to address this legal discrepancy and contradiction will ideally be expected to heal their hydro politics tensions over the utilizations of the Nile River in the basin.
Thus the overall objective of this study is to develop a practical solution to make the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam as a catalyst for a new legal framework to halt the ongoing discord of the Eastern Nile Basin countries over the utilization of Nile River. To meet this objective, this study subscribes to a doctrinal legal approach to reconcile and balance their difference stands on the Nile water utilizations and develop a cooperation framework between Ethiopia and lower riparian states using Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam as a tool.
For the purpose of this study, both primary and secondary data sources will be employed. Finally, it's not only necessary to solve the sticking points of dam such as long term operation, dispute resolution, water allocations, etc. but also searching an equilibrium points between existing treaty claims of Egypt and Sudan vice a visa rearrange new legal arrangements of Ethiopia through considering the objective reality of the basin using dam as a building block for cooperation in the Basin.