Egypt says unilateral GERD operation threatens over 1.1 million livelihoods,

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has warned against the non-cooperative unilateral operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) during future prolonged drought periods in Egypt, saying it can lead over 1.1 million people to lose their livelihoods.

Delivering a speech during the opening of the 7th Cairo Water Week and the 9th Africa Water Week on Sunday, Madbouly warned that the persistence of such unilateral practices by Ethiopia can cause the disappearance of nearly 15% of agricultural land in Egypt.

He emphasized that such negative repercussions due to the dam threatens to increase social and economic tensions, potentially leading to displacement and migration, and exacerbating illegal immigration across Egyptian borders.

Madbouly highlighted GERD as a notable example of the risks resulting from unilateral actions that do not adhere to the principles of international law on shared river basins.

He stated that Ethiopia started dam construction on the Nile River over 13 years ago, without any consultation or sufficient studies regarding safety or the economic, social, and environmental impacts on neighboring countries.

The prime minister emphasized that the unilateral GERD construction violates internatonal law, including the Declaration of Principles (DoP) signed by Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia in 2015, and contradicts the presidential statement issued by the United Nations Security Council in September 2021.

Madbouly warned that Ethiopia’s continuation of unilateral actions regarding GERD poses an existential threat to over 100 million Egyptian citizens.