A fisherman on the River Nile.
Khaled Desouki/AFP via Getty Images
The River Nile is contaminated with microplastics.
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam began generating electricity in 2022.
Minasse Hailu/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
The Nile Basin states are keen to see what kind of deal Ethiopia reaches with Egypt and Sudan.
The Blue Nile river passes through the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
Eduardo Soteras/AFP via Getty Images
Hundreds of rivers are shared between two or more countries – this could be a source of cooperation or conflict.
Anton Petrus/ Getty Images
Peace and security in South Sudan depend on a fully functioning, peaceful and democratic government in Khartoum
Jordanians being evacuated from Sudan amid fighting between two factions.
AP Photo/Raad Adayleh
Sudan’s location and natural resources have attracted international partners keen to benefit either geopolitically or economically.
Anton Petrus/Getty Images
South Sudan’s diplomatic support around energy and water is much sought after in Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan.
The sluice gates open at the Owen Falls dam across the White Nile in Uganda on 14 October 1962.
McCabe/Express/Hulton Archive via Getty Images
The mega dam in Jinja was meant to give Uganda energy independence, but this was constrained by Britain’s agricultural interests in Egypt.
Old picture of construction on Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam, which began generating power on February 20.
Minasse Wondimu Hailu/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
The project violates colonial-era water rights but promises cheap and clean power to East Africa.
Cairo downtown panorama, view on the Nile and bridges, Egypt.
AlexAnton/Shutterstock
Given the ever increasing importance of coordinated management Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt should manage all dams through the Nile Basin Commission.
Construction workers stand next to rock wall at the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in Ethiopia on December 26, 2019.
Despite previous threats by Egypt of military action, a war of over the Nile waters is not a serious possibility.
Parts of Kenya have flooded as a result of Lake Victoria’s rising levels.
Photo by CASMIR ODUOR/AFP via Getty Images
The flooding has affected water resources, agriculture and food security, health and sanitation, fisheries, and energy and infrastructure.
Ethiopian Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy Seleshi Bekele (C) attends a meeting with his Egyptian and Sudanese counterparts, in Khartoum, Sudan, 21 December 2019.
EPA-EFE/MARWAN ALI
The Nile Treaties prevent upstream countries from using the waters of the Nile without the consent of those downstream. This results in an Egyptian bias.
The Nile river in Cairo.
Grant Faint/Getty Images
Instead of allocating the Nile waters based on a fixed, perpetual water supply Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt must consider changes in weather patterns, among other factors.
Lake Victoria.
Aleksandr Stezhkin/Shutterstock
Lake Victoria’s past is key to understanding its future.
Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam, which is under construction, is a source of anger for Egypt.
EPA-EFE/STR
It’s important for the Nile nations to make Ethiopia’s planned dam work for all.
The Nile River during sunset in Luxor, Egypt.
EPA-EFE/Khaled Elfiqi
The threat to use force to defend Egypt’s right to water from the Nile has been a common theme through successive governments.
The River Nile flows through 11 African countries.
Shutterstock
One of the major scenes of a potential water crisis and conflict is the Nile River.
The River Nile at Cairo, Egypt.
Flickr/Emad Faied
The urgency of an agreement to reasonably and equitably share benefits on the Nile Basin can’t be overstated. It would create a a transparent atmosphere in the countries that depend on the Nile.
A canoe ride on a flooded street in Ajegunle, a densely populated area in Lagos, Nigeria.
EPA/George Esiri
Heavy rains, poor and clogged drainage systems have made many towns and cities in Nigeria susceptible to massive flooding.