Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt discuss drought management rules during GERD filling, operation

Addis Ababa, June 16, 2020 (FBC) -The tripartite negotiation between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt over GERD continued for the fifth day on Monday, 15 June 2020.

The negotiation on the guidelines and rules for the first filling and annual operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) was held under the chairmanship of Egypt and in the presence of observers.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Energy of Ethiopia, the three countries negotiated on technical issues on the first filling and annual operation of the dam.

The chair of the previous day meeting recapped the issues on which convergence is reached, including the rules on the first stage filling, volume of environmental flow, guidelines for first stage filling, the drought management rules, rules on dam safety, environmental and social impact assessment studies, and entry into force of the guidelines and rules.

Yesterday’s negotiation mainly focused on discussions on drought management rules during the filling and operation of the dam.

Ethiopia underlined the need to follow an approach that ensures the joint responsibility of the three countries in the incidence of drought while preserving the optimal operation of the dam.

The negotiation will reconvene on Tuesday 16 June 2020. The legal teams will convene earlier today to tackle the predominantly legal issues and the trilateral meeting will follow with the chairmanship of Ethiopia.

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