Egypt and Ethiopia agreed Thursday to finalise a deal over Ethiopia’s controversial mega-dam on the Blue Nile within four months, a breakthrough after years of tensions between the two countries.
The massive $4.2-billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (Gerd) has been at the centre of a regional dispute ever since Ethiopia broke ground on the project in 2011, with Egypt fearing it will slash its share of Nile water.
“But in Cairo on Thursday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed discussed ways of overcoming the current stalemate in negotiations over the dam, “a joint statement published by the Egyptian presidency said.