NILE CASE STUDY

• The ................. km River Nile is the longest river in the world, so it is not surprising that it flows through several countries.

  
  

  It is an international ................. ................. whose water resources are shared by .................. countries.

  . 6700 km

  
  

  . Transboundary River

  
  

  . 11
• List the eleven countries the River Nile runs through.

  . Tanzania

  
  

  . Uganda

  
  

  . Rwanda

  
  

  . Burundi

  
  

  . Congo-Kinshasa

  
  

  . Kenya

  
  

  . Ethiopia

  
  

  . Eritrea

  
  

  . South Sudan

  
  

  . Sudan

  
  

  . Egypt
• a) What are the Nile's two major tributaries.

  
  

  b) Where do they meet.

  a) White Nile and Blue Nile.

  
  

  b) Which meet near Khartoum in the Sudan
• The White Nile, whose source is ................. ................. near ................., which subsequently flows into ................ ................ through ................ and into ................


  . Lake Luvironzo

  
  

  . Lake Tanganyika

  
  

  . Lake Victoria

  
  

  . Uganda

  
  

  . Sudan
• The Blue Nile, rises in the ................. ................

  . Ethiopian Highlands
• The White Nile and the Blue Nile's confluence is at ................, from where the river continues to flow ................ into the desert state of ................. and on to its ................. in the ................. Sea.

  . Khartoum

  
  

  . Northwards

  
  

  . Egypt

  
  

  . Delta

  
  

  . Mediterranean Sea
• The Nike Basin covers about .................% of the African continent.

  . 10%
• ................. countries compete for the Nile's water and yet with a measured flow of ................. ................ cubic metres, the Nile has Avery modest discharge compared to other great rivers of the world, for instance the .................. and the River .................

  . 11

  
  

  . 84 billion

  
  

  . Amazon

  
  

  . River Congo
• Much of the river and its tributaries flow through semi-arid ................ and arid ................. areas, which increases their importance as ............................................................................................................


  . Sahel

  
  

  . Sahara

  
  

  . Other water resources are scarce
• There are both ................ and ................. factors which could trigger conflict over the Nile's waters.

  . Physical

  
  

  . Human
• a) Why is the river an increasingly valuable resource for these Nile countries.

  
  

  b) Why is it under increasing pressure.

  a) Provide water for domestic, industrial and agricultural purposes.

  
  

  b) It's under increasing pressure from rapid population growth, economic development and climate change.
• Why is the River Nile particularly important to Egypt and Sudan.

  . It is the primary water source.

  
  

  . Egypt depends on the river for 95% of its water needs.
• Explain why there is a long history of disagreement over the use of the Nile.


  Disagreement arose originally from historical water allocation agreements that favoured the downstream states of Egypt and Sudan, and more recently as a result of ambitious dam-building programmes which have the potential to reduce downstream flows.
• Give details of the 1929 Nile agreement between Egypt and the U.K. (the colonial power in Sudan at the time).


  It granted significant water allocations to Egypt and Sudan, making no allowance for the water needs of the other Nile states.

  
  

  It also granted Egypt veto power over construction projects in the Nile and its tributaries, in an effort to minimise interference with the flow of the water in the Nile.
• Why has the historic agreement led to conflicts between the Nile river basin countries.


  Upstream countries are increasingly harvesting the waters of the Nile to meet the needs of their growing populations and economies.

  
  

  Yet Egypt has maintained that the water rights it acquired through the 1929 agreement must be honoured, and that no construction project may be undertaken on the River Nile or any of its tributaries without prior approval from its government.
• In 1999 the River Nile countries, except ................. signed the ................. ................ .................. in an effort to enhance cooperation over the use of the Nile water resources.

  . Eritrea

  
  

  . Nile Basin Initiative
• What did the signing of the 1999 Nile Basin Initiative, initiate work on.


  On developing a permanent legal framework for governing the Nile River Basin, with equitable water allocation - the Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA)
• a) What other countries in May 2010 signed the CFA agreement on sharing the Nile water.

  
  

  b) Why did this raise strong opposition.

  a) Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.

  
  

  b) Raised strong opposition from Egypt and Sudan over fears that it would reduce their water rights and allocations.
• a) What did the Ethiopian Prime Minister announce in April 2011.

  
  

  b) Why did this meet with an angry response from the Egyptian president.

  a) The construction of the Grand Ethiopia Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile.

  
  

  b) The Egyptian president stated stated that Egyptians would not accept any projects on the Nile River that threatened their livelihood.
• Further discussions led to a recent agreement, that is expected to resolve some of the issues between Ethiopia and Egypt. Give further detail.


  In March 2015 Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan met and signed an agreement on the development of the Grand Ethiopia Renaissance Dam.

  
  

  However this agreement did not resolve the broader contentious issues of the Nile waters among all Nile countries as shown by Egypt not signing the agreement.