Egyptian Minister of Irrigation Mohamed Abdel-Aty and his accompanying delegation held talks with Ethiopia’s Minister of Water, Irrigation and Electricity at the headquarters of the Ethiopian Ministry.
The Egyptian delegation handed the Ethiopian side its vision on the filling and operating of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). The move comes as a prelude to a “six-party meeting”, in the presence of the ministers of irrigation and foreign affairs of the two countries, along with Sudan.
In a statement on Friday, Abdel-Ati said that the Egyptian delegation included leaders from the Ministry of Irrigation, and presented Egypt’s experience in water resource management, raising the efficiency of use and curbing water weeds.
He added that the Ethiopian side was invited to learn from these experiences and prepare for bilateral joint projects, which will contribute to supporting and consolidating cooperation between the two countries.
Before his visit to Ethiopia, Abdel-Ati went to Sudan where he met with Sudanese Minister of Water Resources, Irrigation and Electricity, Salah Ahmed, and discussed consultations for the dam’s negotiations.
The presidents of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia held a tripartite summit in February in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, stressing the need for their sharing one vision on the issue of the GERD, and promoting the principle of not harming the interests of any country involved, for the sake of mutual benefit.
Egypt reviewed its vision during the February summit, and stressed the importance of working to ensure a balanced and cooperative vision for the Ethiopian dam to achieve the interests and objectives of the three countries involved, consider the overall dimensions of their relations and how to enhance cooperation between them.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
