Egypt: Nile Basin challenges cannot be addressed unilaterally

CAIRO, Dec 7 (KUNA) -- Egypt's Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Dr. Hani Sewilam affirmed Sunday that challenges facing the Nile Basin cannot be resolved through unilateral measures but through genuine cooperation and sustainable management of shared resources in line with international law.
This came in a statement by Sewilam at the 33rd meeting of the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) Council of Water Ministers, held in Burundi.
Sewilam said the NBI remains the only inclusive platform uniting all basin countries, regretting that while most states choose dialogue, "one party continues to promote hostile and provocative rhetoric aimed at undermining basin unity." He stressed that Egypt will continue exercising restraint and avoid responding to such statements to prevent the NBI from being drawn into unjustified disputes.
Sewilam underlined that Egypt supports the development aspirations of all Nile Basin countries, provided they cause no harm, expressing hope to replicate the cooperation model of the southern basin in the eastern basin through transparency and proper impact studies.
He noted that Egypt has backed several basin projects over the years, most recently approving two projects in Uganda and Tanzania, reflecting Cairo's constructive approach based on prior notification and consultation under international law.
The minister reaffirmed Egypt's commitment to strengthening the Nile Basin Initiative as the unified platform enabling optimal use of the Nile's resources. (end) asm.seo