High-Level Regional Conference on Equitable and Reasonable Utilization of the Nile kicks off
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A three-day first regional high-level conference of the Nile Upper Reparian Countries cooperation conference kicks off in Addis Ababa today (September 05).
H.E. Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Minister of Water and Energy H.E. Dr. Eng. Habtamu Itefa, State Ministers of Foreign Affairs, H.E Ambassador Tesfaye and H.E. Ambassador Birtukan Ayano, Deputy Mayor of Addis Ababa City, Zantirar Abay,Deputy Director General of Authority for Civil Society Organization, Mr.Fasikaw Molla , Director General of African Youth Development and Excellence Center , Mr.Fuad Gena, delegates from Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, and South Sudan; representatives from various water institutes; and high-level guests were in attendance.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, H.E. Demeke Mekonnen welcomed the guests and emphasized the importance of the river for the riparian states in his opening remarks.
The river, which supplies livelihood to millions of people who live along its banks in Ethiopia alone, accounts for two-thirds of the nation's surface water, according to the prime minister.
However, as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Mr. Demeke, noted, the Nile River is confronted with both man-made and natural issues that affect sustainable use of the river, exacerbate water stress in the region, and cause tensions over the utilization of the available water.
Mr. Demeke explained the issues preventing the sustainable use of the Nile river, saying that it is "on the one hand, threatened by the ever-increasing water demand due to population growth, environmental degradation, and climate change, among other things." The tendency to assert hegemony over the shared water resource, on the other hand, continues to be a barrier to the equitable and sensible utilization of the Nile waters, Mr. Demeke emphasized.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen also wished for fruitful deliberations at the conclusion.
The summit is organized by AFRI RUN organizing committee, which includes the Ministry of Foregin Affairs , Ministry of Water and Energy , African Youth Development and Excellence Center , and other stakeholders.