DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania  8 December 2009 — Nile Basin leaders praised ten years of cooperation under the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) and made a strong appeal for continued collaboration as countries look to accelerate investments in power, agriculture, and water resource management. 
At a conference marking NBI’s 10th Anniversary, participants and stakeholders gathered at the Mlimani City Conference Centre to take stock of NBI’s achievements in bringing countries together, increasing cooperation, and providing a platform for dialogue and peace. Participants called for intensified efforts by the Nile Basin countries to build on the achievements and to create a permanent river basin organization so that the people of the region can reap further benefits of cooperation.

 

Opening the conference, H.E. Dr. Ali Mohamed Shein, Vice President of the United Republic of Tanzania said, “Ten years ago there was an atmosphere of mistrust, suspicion, and doubts. Today Nile basin countries are open to each other, ready and willing to interact and exchange information.  This is an achievement to be cherished, nourished, and nurtured by all.”

On the opening day, Ministers from the Basin countries congratulated the NBI for its achievements through the implementation of the capacity building and investment programs, in particular the Shared Vision Program and the two sub-regional Subsidiary Action Programs. They noted that through knowledge sharing, investment and cooperation, the Nile countries are forming a distinct community and a regional identity. They also are laying the foundation for long-term investments in modern agriculture, clean electricity and sound environmental management in the ten Nile Basin countries. 

Egypt’s Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, H.E. Mohamed Nasr El-Din Allam said, “The fruits of our labor are now ready to be harvested.  NBI has built a portfolio with investments expected to reach US$2 billion, has carried out power development studies and preparation of power projects, focused on improving agricultural productivity and trade, and enhanced cooperation.  I have no doubt that the shared vision is within our reach, but it will require sustained commitment and support.” Minister Allam is also the Chair of the Nile Council of Ministers (NILE-COM), the highest decision-making body of the NBI.

The Executive Director of the Nile Basin Initiative, Ms. Henriette Ndombe said: “Today is a celebration for all of the countries and also for the region to commemorate all that has been done, to learn from each other’s experiences and to plan how we can move forward together.”  She noted that NBI’s efforts to encourage networks of Basin citizens has resulted in stakeholders moving from simple beneficiaries to collaborative partners of Nile Basin investments.
The Nile Basin Discourse (NBD) led a discussion about the role that civil society has played in Nile developments. “When NBI started the voice of civil society was not there – now it is,” said Ms. Sarah Naigaga, Regional Coordinator for the NBD.  “We provide a platform for civil society organizations to make a contribution and have a voice,” she added.

The conference hosted three parallel workshops focusing on critical areas of NBI efforts.  Following are highlights:

Providing Energy for Africa’s growth
One in four Sub-Saharan Africans has access to power, and despite the region’s hydropower potential – with only 10% of hydropower in the region developed – the average access to electricity in the Nile Basin countries is less than 15%. In addition to increasing hydropower generation, the region can help meet its energy needs by creating institutional structures to support increased power trade.  

In the past ten years, NBI has laid the foundation for increased power generation and trade.  Mr. Desire Nzayanga, power sector specialist in the NBI, pointed to multiple interconnections underway, enabling Burundi, Uganda, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Kenya to regularly exchange electrical power, and avert future energy crises.  Studies to interconnect Kenya and Tanzania are also underway. Transmission lines will soon connect Ethiopia and Sudan, enabling these two countries to exchange electrical power routinely, and to share the benefits of future power generation projects. 

The Regional Rusumo Falls Hydropower Project (Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania) and the Joint Multi-purpose Project (Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan) are being planned as future power investments.

Opportunities for Irrigation
An estimated 85% of poor people in the region live in rural areas and depend on agriculture. Therefore, improving agricultural productivity through more effective use of water and expanding agricultural trade - including associated infrastructure investments – between countries will be critical to fighting poverty and securing sufficient food for the future. Currently, irrigation covers only an estimated 5% of the land under cultivation. But Mr. David Molden of the International Water Management Institute warned that while irrigation is critical, Nile Basin farmers must also make the best use of rainwater and other sources (groundwater, etc.).

The new Regional Agricultural Trade and Productivity project is building upon this early Nile work to support productive water use in agriculture, and promote agricultural trade, including incorporating trade issues into strategic water resources planning and management. This important project will also enable the Nile countries to define the appropriate role of the NBI in supporting food security.  In the Eastern Nile, ongoing irrigation and drainage projects in Egypt and Ethiopia are bringing new technologies and approaches to the region to improve agricultural productivity and efficiency in water use.

Managing the River
To effectively manage an international river’s resources, there needs to be sufficient trust and cooperation, even in the absence of a formal agreement. Mr. Don Blackmore, who was presenting international experience in river management, said that NBI has achieved this trust and cooperation. He went on to say that NBI can better lead development in the region by improving system management and reducing evaporation losses.

Mr. Mekuria Tafesse, a former Executive Director for NBI’s Eastern Nile project office, briefed participants on NBI experience in managing river flow information, particularly through the Eastern Nile Flood Preparedness and Early Warning project.  Other NBI efforts, organized under the Decision Support System, are contributing to information gathering and exchange among the countries.

The conference discussed climate change in several sessions. Although the precise impacts on the region are uncertain, the fact of accelerating climate change will result in more frequent droughts and floods. Adaptation to climate changes requires collaborative river management and greater information exchange. 

Before concluding the conference, experts discussed benefit sharing by countries sharing river basins.  Ms. Barbara Miller, Worldbank, delivering a presentation on international experience, noted that in successful benefit sharing arrangements countries “focused on the division of benefits (and costs) of water use and not on the physical allocation of water”.

NBI is working to define a benefit sharing mechanism that will enable countries to identify potential opportunities of mutual benefits and related costs.  Ms. Hellen Natu, socio-economic expert formerly with NBI noted that such a framework could allow “quantum improvements in the reduction of poverty and hunger.”

The Anniversary celebration concluded with a call for continued progress in regional integration. 

“We hear the cry for change along the shores of the Nile; we hear the cry for unity along the lakes…  The struggle needs to continue, the struggle needs to intensify – let us all pull together to make this happen.” Keynote Speaker, Professor Ali Mazrui, Director of Global Studies, Binghamton University.