Why the 11 countries that rely on the Nile need to reach a river deal soon
More than 300 million people rely on the waters of the River Nile. The Nile river basin contains over 10% of Africa’s landmass, in 11 countries: Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Egypt, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea and Kenya. Many of these countries rely almost exclusively on the Nile as their source of freshwater.
Water demand throughout the region is expected to soar. This is on the back of rising populations as well as ambitious initiatives, particularly in Egypt and Ethiopia which have plans to develop hydroelectric power.
The need for cooperative sustainable management of the trans-boundary water, and related, resources of the Basin has never been more compelling.
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