Ethiopia Diverts Water From the Nile River

Ethiopia, a country from which some 85 percent of the Nile River is sourced, may have aggravated water resource tensions with Sudan and Egypt, two downstream Nile River countries. On May 28, Ethiopia began diverting water from the Blue Nile River so that construction could continue on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, a 6,000-megawatt hydroelectric plant.

The Grand Renaissance project necessarily will stem the flow of water to downstream countries. While Ethiopia insists that the dam will benefit downstream countries, the fact remains that the Nile has little water to spare. Sudan is thus concerned about the project — as is Egypt, which would be particularly hard-hit by the disrupted water flow.