GERD: Set to Benefit Africans

GERD

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Since its inception almost a decade ago by the then Ethiopia’s former Prime Minister, the late Meles Zenawi, a couple of debates have been ongoing in a bid to either stop or slow down the construction of the 4.5B dollar Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). Egypt has been raising concerns over this project for what most analysts say is the water flow interruption based on the past treaties. Besides, the bilateral relations between the two countries have been put to test since the dam was started in 2011.

According to Zenawi, the project was critical to the country’s development efforts and the region at large. In his mind, the regional states included the East African countries and the Egyptians whose livelihood depends on the Nile waters. As the debate rages on how Ethiopia plans to fill the GubaWoreda based dam after completion, pundits believe Sudan may hold a crucial key to the progress of this project. Although previous talks on the mega project have born little fruit, the mega project stands to give cheaper hydropower to the region that would eventually propel economic growth in the Horn of Africa.

Currently, the filling of GERD is proving to be very contentious with the major stakeholders, Ethiopia and Egypt disagreeing on the timeline and the modalities. With over 73 percent of the work completed, Ethiopia is proposing to kick off the fillup in a couple of weeks. According to Ethiopian Minister for Water, Irrigation and Energy, Seleshi Bekele, “the mobilization of the dam reservoir to start in July, in about a month away.” This has not only irked Egypt but the perceived negotiator Sudan seems to be playing numerous diplomatic cards to not be seen to be hurting the two “hydrobrothers”.

With the completion of GERD, it is obvious Egypt’s 55.5 billion cubic meters water flow is likely to be interrupted alongside a few farmers along the Blue Nile Basin. But development analysts believe that the bigger picture lies within the benefits the dam is likely to bring a region grossly underserved with the much need electricity to boost manufacturing and industrialization. Even though it would interrupt trade for usual power exporters like Uganda due to increased regional power supply, farming for South Sudan and Sudan’s rural natives, and Egypt’s reliance on the Nile on the domestic front, the benefits the GERD brings to the region is enormous.

Antony Okonji, Development Consultant believes that in a continent where more than 600 million people have no access to electricity, any kind of power generation is welcome. “I have worked in development and seen the impact small scale solar power interventions have brought to ordinary people. These include

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learning, commerce, agriculture, access to information, healthcare, and a diverse

improvement in livelihood,” he added.

He says such a project will be greatly beneficial to the larger East and Horn of Africa. Although there are arguments against GERD for environmental and climatic reasons, one must realize that it will infringe on territorial resources of various countries which can be resolved on a round table. The largest hydropower of about 6,000MW upon completion will triple the country’s current electricity production with great windfall potential for the Ethiopian government.

The power generation by GERD will also bring down market costs in the power generation and distribution in the region with key producers likely to readjust their prices to its neighboring countries.

On an international platform, the dam erases the profitable gains made by investors of clean and renewable energy in the region and some of whom are major western businesses. It is one of those grand development projects that interrupt the status quo but will most likely benefit the region more than it would damage it, revealed Antony.

Essentially, the benefits far outweigh the risks and closer scrutiny will reveal the invisible hand of businesses, politics, and development proponents. All in all, Africa needs such infrastructure even just as symbolic successes in electricity generation for a continent branded ‘dark’ for its little electricity connectivity.

Otieno Ogeda CEO, Finend360 and Communications Expert on Development in Africa.