Who can use the water of the mighty Nile River? It’s more than a theoretical question as Ethiopia plans to open a massive hydroelectric dam
Lesson summary
Time for another Plain English lesson. I’m Jeff, JR is the producer, and this is Plain English lesson number 278, which means you can find the full lesson online at PlainEnglish.com/278.
We have lots of civil engineers in our midst; if you’re one of them, then this lesson is for you. Egypt and Ethiopia are locked in a battle over the waters of Africa’s largest river, the Nile, as Ethiopia plans to fill an enormous reservoir. In the second half of today’s audio lesson, we’ll talk about what it means if something doesn’t “sit well” with you. Keep listening, too, because I have an exciting announcement for everyone in the audience who speaks Polish or Turkish. Polish or Turkish, Turkish or Polish: keep listening for a special announcement just for you.
Battle over the Nile’s waters
The Nile river is either the longest or the second-longest in the world, depending on how you measure it. Starting at its head in Lake Victoria, it flows over 4,000 miles north and empties into the Mediterranean Sea. Its two major tributaries—the Blue Nile and the longer White Nile—meet near the city of Khartoum, Sudan, and combine into one as the river flows north through the rest of Sudan and into Egypt.
The river passes through eleven countries, but is most associated with Egypt. Ancient, ancient civilizations in Egypt relied on the Nile for sustenance and survival. It played a critical role in the earliest civilizations because the river basin was very fertile in an otherwise dry part of the world. Even today, it is the principal source of water for both Sudan and Egypt.
And that’s where we begin today’s story. Ethiopia is southeast of Egypt: upstream, since the Nile flows south to north. The Blue Nile tributary flows through Ethiopia. Remember there are two tributaries, the White Nile and the Blue Nile. The White Nile is longer and begins in Lake Victoria, but the Blue Nile, though shorter, supplies more water. The Blue Nile runs through Ethiopia.
Ethiopia is about to complete one of the world’s largest hydroelectric dams across its section of the Blue Nile. It is called the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. When complete, it will provide electricity to 65 million people who currently don’t have a reliable supply of electric power. It will be the largest hydroelectric powerplant in Africa and the seventh-largest in the world. To power the dam, Ethiopia will fill a massive reservoir. Depending on the amount of rainfall, it will take between five and fifteen years to fill the reservoir completely. Ethiopia plans to start this month.
This does not sit well with Egypt, which is downstream of Ethiopia. Egypt relies on the Nile for its drinking water and for its agriculture industry. Egypt believes that it has a historical right to the waters of the Nile River. Egypt believes its very survival depends on having enough water flow through the Nile River. Egypt is worried that in times of drought, Ethiopia will horde all the water from the primary tributary in its reservoir. In Egypt’s view, Ethiopia will have the power to turn Egypt’s critical water supply on and off. Egypt wants to prevent Ethiopia from filling the reservoir or, at minimum, negotiate a firm agreement on how much water Ethiopia must let pass through the dam.
Ethiopia’s view is different. Ethiopia believes that it has a right to use the water that passes through its country, its territory. Ethiopia’s view is that its citizens don’t have a reliable source of electric power. Why should they not be able to harness the power of one of the world’s largest rivers that runs through it, just because Egypt has a longer history and cultural attachment to the Nile? Ethiopia believes it has as much a right to use the water as Egypt has.
The two sides have been negotiating these points for years, dating back to 2011 when construction on the dam started. Egypt’s army has contemplated simply blowing up the dam to prevent it from ever opening. That option does not appear to be under serious consideration today; however, Egypt is taking a hard line in negotiations.
The two sides have agreed on a lot over the years, but the thorniest issue remains: what to do during a drought. In a drought, how much water will Ethiopia release from the dam? The more water it releases, the less it can use for its own electricity generation. In an extreme drought, its population would be left without electricity. But if it does not release enough, it could cut off Egypt’s only water supply.
Ethiopia would prefer to negotiate water levels on a case-by-case basis whenever a drought occurs. This suits them just fine: in a drought, they would have all the leverage, all the power, over Egypt. Egypt prefers a firm agreement ahead of time that guarantees Ethiopia would release a certain volume of water, even in a drought.
The US and the World Bank tried and failed to settle the disagreement. Now, the African Union is trying. Egypt is distrustful of the AU, which has its headquarters in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.
Ethiopia has decided to begin filling the reservoir even without a water-sharing agreement with Egypt. Its citizens are ecstatic. Many of them bought small-denomination bonds to finance the dam’s construction, which is considered a project of national importance. Pride in the dam is one of the few things that unites people of all ethnicities in Ethiopia.
Translations available in Polish and Turkish
Before we move to the second half of the program, I have an important programming announcement for you. Starting today, I am proud to announce we are expanding the number of languages supported on our transcripts to nine. We now have translations of Turkish and Polish available. We have lots of listeners, lots of free members, and lots of Plain English Plus+ members from both Turkey and Poland. And I’m so happy to be able to offer translations starting with this lesson.
Here’s what that means. If you are either a Starter member or a Plain English Plus+ member, you have access to an enhanced version of the transcript. When you’re logged in and you read the transcript, you’ll see about 100 words highlighted in blue. If you hover your mouse over the highlighted words and phrases, you will instantly see the translations into your language if you speak Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, German, Chinese, French, Italian, and now Polish and Turkish. It’s a tremendous benefit and it’s available starting at just $7 per month for the Starter membership.
And these aren’t just automatic translations either. We have two new professional translators on our team, Mateusz from Poland and Melisa handles the Turkish translations.
So if you’re in Poland, Turkey, or if you speak our other languages—Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, German, Chinese, French, or Italian—and if you want access to these translations starting at just $7 per month, then go to PlainEnglish.com/join and pick your plan today.
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