Congo renews push to resolve Nile dam dispute
While more than five months have passed since the last round of negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam was held in Kinshasa, Congo seems to be preparing to host Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia for a new round of talks in the hope of resolving the decadelong crisis.
CAIRO — After more than five months since the last round of negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) failed in Kinshasa in April, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is seeking to revive talks between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia in a bid to solve the decadelong dispute over the controversial dam.
On Sept. 15, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the DRC Christophe Lutundula Apala arrived in Cairo as part of his tour to the three disputing parties as part of efforts to revive the tripartite negotiations on the GERD.
Abbas Sharaki, a professor of geology and water resources at Cairo University, believes there is a renewed Congolese will to resolve the issue. He told Al-Monitor Apala’s visit comes after months of calm surrounding the GERD dossier after the issue was last raised at the UN Security Council on July 8.
The visit, he added, also coincided with the UN Security Council’s statement on Sept. 15 that called on the concerned parties to resume negotiations “within a reasonable time frame.”
