Egypt's Dam Problem: The Geopolitics of the Nile
The first 1000 people to use this link will get a free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership: skl.sh/wendoverproductions11201
Listen to Extremities at ExtremitiesPodcast.com
Buy a Wendover Productions t-shirt: standard.tv/collections/wendover-productions/products/wendover-productions-shirt
Subscribe to Half as Interesting (The other channel from Wendover Productions): notown.info
NOtown: www.NOtown.com/WendoverProductions
Instagram: Instagram.com/sam.from.wendover
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/WendoverPro
Sponsorship Enquiries: wendover@standard.tv
Other emails: sam@wendover.productions
Reddit: Reddit.com/r/WendoverProductions
Writing by Sam Denby
Research by Sam Denby and Tristan Purdy
Editing by Alexander Williard
Animation by Josh Sherrington
Sound by Graham Haerther
Thumbnail by Simon Buckmaster
Select footage courtesy the AP Archive
References:
[1] www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2011/04/20/a-dam-nuisance
[2] www.economist.com/node/21688360/print
[3] www.economist.com/leaders/2020/07/02/egypt-ethiopia-and-sudan-must-learn-how-to-share-the-nile-river
[4] www.egypttoday.com/Article/1/90344/Sudan-urges-reaching-agreement-guaranteeing-safety-of-Roseires-Dam
[5] www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2020/07/02/the-bitter-dispute-over-africas-largest-dam
[6] www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-54531747
[7] www.ifpri.org/blog/whats-future-food-subsidies-egypt
[8] data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?locations=ET
[9] www.worldfinance.com/infrastructure-investment/ethiopias-remarkable-economic-ascent
[10] www.iwtc.info/2007_pdf/2-5.pdf
[11] www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/ethiopias-leader-hails-1st-filling-of-massive-disputed-dam/2020/07/22/b3bd4e1e-cc0f-11ea-99b0-8426e26d203b_story.html#comments-wrapper
[12] www.hidasse.gov.et/web/guest/about-the-dam
[13] egyptindependent.com/sudan-announces-sudden-decline-of-nile-waters-despite-ethiopias-denial-of-dam-filling/
[14] foreignpolicy.com/2020/09/28/renaissance-dam-ethiopia-egypt-negotiations/
[15] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_hydroelectric_power_stations
[16] data.worldbank.org/indicator/EG.USE.ELEC.KH.PC?locations=ET
[17] web.archive.org/web/20170824011833/www.ethpress.gov.et/herald/index.php/technology/item/8498-purpose-driven-commitment-from-every-corner-to-realize-ethiopian-renaissance
[18] spectrum.ieee.org/energy/policy/the-grand-ethiopian-renaissance-dam-gets-set-to-open
[19] www.press.et/english/?p=20760#
[20] www.cnn.com/2015/03/06/africa/grand-reneissance-dam-ethiopia/index.html
Musicbed SyncID:
MB013HQAMU1QWXR
Egypt wants the floods that’s the problem because that’s the way they end up with fertile soil.
I'm surprised you didn't mention the options Egypt has such as desalination just like Isreal and other countries do. Egypt has built its own dam, the Aswan dam without any objection. Egypt refers to a colonial era treaty but Ethiopia was never colonized and maintains her Sovereignty !
Dam Ethiopian...
Egypt will destroy Ethiopias dam. Ethiopia is just a lightweight! Egypt is ranked the 9th strongest army in the world
The tense use continuously delight because shop ophthalmoscopically slip abaft a pale quicksand. romantic, valuable cost
idk doesnt seem that bad i mean its just a khartoum after all
The shy daffodil unpredictably consist because owner clearly beg near a crowded farm. level, level hamburger
I agree with this guy
Ethiopia? You mean EPOpia?
Any trans-border dispute exists Britain: did i do that?
good luck with thaT
What dept does Ethiopia taking on to build the damn
he said mediteranean ocean lol
This is a really informative production. Just the best, as always, from Wendover!
Then the Egyptians should be kind and humble and welcome Ethiopian migrants and protect Black Africans and Christians as a show of gratitude for Ethiopia not cutting off their water instead of having that superior Arab Muslim attitude.
Because they don't need gratitude, this is just illegal
Its etiopias water they were not included in the agrements so go ahead etiopia
Ah yes, Snoop Dogg's birthplace, The Kingdom of Kush
ehhh.... hydroelectric dams suck anyway... they (& egypt & sudan) should be thinking about solar long term
i say blow that fucking river up! how dare they do this to Egypt! egypt is a part of european history and european culture, egypt has a presence in balkin history, and had a presence in the bible which shaped german france and england history and even russians where christian once, the world needs to come together to protect Egypt from this heinous thing! we cannot allow Egypt to die like this 3 years of fammine X_X millions of egyptians will die nay tens of millions! if this damn causes 3 year famine i will personally go down to ethiopia and kick their ass! (as an american soldier)
@Nahom Worku wake up soldier, we have a dam to burn!
Why can't ethiopia built there dam? Egypt literly build their own Dams. And you should know there is thousands dying of poverty. Ethiopia already filled it It will be finished
"If the river’s level falls, then let all the Pharaoh’s soldiers rush and return only after the Nile is liberated from what restricts its flow." Engraved phrase On the walls of the Nile Scale in El Manial - Egypt .!!!!!
Kingdom of Kush! Sounds pretty chill 👌😂
One way or another we Ethiopian will finish our dam.no one sleep peacefully until we finish our dam.
You won't, or there will be a disaster
How about Ethiopia fills the reservoir up as fast as reasonably possible and the West supplies the downstream nations with water to mitigate the deficit? Water is hardly scarce in Northern Europe and we would benefit from facilitating a renewable energy megaproject like this as well.... Not to mention an Ethiopia that doesn't need emergency food aid every other year. Plus we've already got a massive fleet of mostly empty container ships going back to China via the Suez Canal anyways. Just an idea.
Egypt have a problem of water management and it's a religious country , so it's hard for them to advance
Unfortunately Egypt feels that it can boss Ethiopia around but that is very unproductive
Kingdom of Kush the dankest kingdom
KINGDOM OF KUSH
As an Egyptian, unpopular opinion here: The dam actually ruined us. The water level got way low, thereby growing the desert regions. The land to live on, is actually shrinking at a fast rate. 🇪🇬 🇪🇬 🇪🇬
Free Giulio Regeni
Our river, we'll build the dam or destroy the river wish no more Nile
You won't 😂
LEAVE NATURE ALONE AND LET IT BE!! MAN WANTS TO CONTROL EVERYTHING! 😡
Satanic symbols. F you!
Satan? It doesn't exist, like God as well
no mention of Lake Nassar which mitigates the Nile flow problem.
More videos on geopolitics please and not bloody airlines 🙄😂
The video is pretty good, only missed one point, Ethiopia can generate same amount of electricity with 14 billion cubic meters reservoir, though they want 74 bn to make a water bank and sell water to Egypt (water like oil).
Fair analysis of the situation well done. I still hope we don't end up blowing up this Dam but we have no choice but to. It's not something that will make us happy but it will definitely keep us hydrated and uhmmm....alive!
Isn’t the kind of sad that if the Opia has bigger and better infrastructure projects than most of the Western world. Whereas we all say, no, too expensive.. No wonder everything is crumbling around us. Stop doing this kind of stuff 50 years ago
Ethiopia clearly dont give a dam.
And now i wanna play simcity
i smell war
If they currently use 187 times less electricity than America, than doubling their electrical output would not give them a surplus of energy. It would simply make so the people there have a little more access to electricity.
Eygptians are acting as if the water is originating from their land, even the word selfish can't describe them enough, 85% of the water is going from ETHIOPIA! how come we aren't able to use our water?? We didn't say that the whole water is gonna be halted from flowing but we both can share the water!!! IT IS MY DAM!!!
You would kill 40 millions people
No mention of Lake Nasser, the 50 year old, sixth largest, dam in the world. In Egypt. It is twice the size of the Ethiopian dam being built. I think they will survive, with or without an agreement of filling rate in Ethiopia.
will there be famine in egypt due to the lack of water?
Yes
You have made nearly a million people stupider. The CCP is building the dam for the CCP. They do not care what European's call these places. The CCP considers all of Africa nothing more than a satellite state of CHYna.
Good morning ladies and gentlemen my name is (NAABOMPER POWERSnotown.info/two/video/x9anrGF_fLJxu8k.html +233249380996 ) of the one you have been hearing about or the one you are yet to know is a must for everyone to know me because what has been happening around these days is the reason why you should know me a lot of platform a lot of people come out to claim they are helping people but they don't have proof for that I'm not here to say that I'm helping people I'm here to see what I do I'm not here to convince anyone or confuse anyone take your time to click the link I will post down here the first one is for my Instagram and the other one is for my NOtown you subscribe it take your time to watch all my videos I like them from there you can now WhatsApp me and tell me what you understand by what you see the only Assurance I will give to you is that no matter what kind of problem you are facing today or now please don't put in your mind that this is come this is far far different from scam here am I surely you this is the Jesus Christ you have been looking for with no more did Jesus Christ is now in your doorstep open the door and let him in because if you take the risk off doing it you will gain 100% without losing without regretting that is for sure take my number now WhatsApp me all your problems that you are facing today financially or not financially it will stop immediately as I'm talking to you I will get time to talk to you I will get time to explain everything to you I will get time to work for you I will get time to attend and make sure your problem solved no matter where you are which country you are are you a black or white I'm assuring you know that your problem is about to stop immediately you contact me thank you (0249380996 ) ,pls this is my WhatsApp number/ (+233249380996 )notown.info/two/video/s8tpjYtzpMWjksU.html
Malhamdulillah.,
Egypt is crazy she thinks, the Nile river is her God given right.. Do you know Egypt why she is so concerned because she is selling the water for Israel and exporting powers to Europe, Greece etc.. 🇬🇷.Nile making billions for Egypt.. Now its time 🇪🇹 would love to drink her own water, after she is the mother for Nile..
The rightful view admittedly frighten because purchase natively sail by a possessive baseball. tan, dizzy noise
Nile source is Ethiopia The great Ethiopian Renaissance dam is right . Egypt be careful you will pay a big sacrifice
Tbh Egypt has no one but themselves to blame. They relied too much on the nile as though it were infinite, they enforced old colonial treaties that disadvantaged other upstream countries, and instead of fostering friendly diplomatic relations with their neighboring African countries they got swept up in the PanArabist nonsense of the 20th century and cast Africa aside.. They've looked down on us Subsaharan Africans for too long.
Shortage of water will kill millions of people in Egypt... It's a matter of life and death... No agreement equals war
The three unshielded unpredictably spot because cd comparatively alert apropos a blue cyclone. fretful, boundless olive
Egypt no water egypt people deccal egypt people dead Thank you ethiopia bravo ethiopia.
I see an Egyptian-Ethiopian War coming.
@bircruz555 please tell me the facts, because so far you have mentioned 200 year old wars and just said I was plain wrong when I made a point.
@Z A I really do not care who you are. I am just telling you the facts.
@bircruz555 I am not Egyptian and do not care how corrupt there military is, I am not saying Ethiopia is a worse country I am simply stating facts, Egypt can not win a war a quarter of a continent away but that wouldn't be there goal because there goal wouldn't be invasion or a long bloody war there goal would be to bomb the dam, Sudan gave Egypt an airfield close to Ethiopia and they would just use that to bomb Ethiopia.
@Z A Try it and find out. The proof is in the pudding. Egyptian army is a corrupt institution holding a state hostage. Start there.
@Z A Add to that Ethiopia is currently in a civil war.
I didn`t know there was such a close multilateral cooperation on the Senegal river. Unfortunately, defusing the situation between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia will be much harder. All three of these states are notably unstable and facing terrible internal crisis. Cultivating hostilities abroad is one of the oldest tricks in the book of how dictators can distract the population from their own issues to keep a country united.
egypts got one big damn problem
The Nile, the land used to be blood flow for a moment of Moses mighty hands.
Top gear fans know the niles source
=YUP,IT'S THE *DAM* PROBLEM =HEHE
Colonial powers leaving was such a mistake. These tribes have no idea what they are doing.
The Aswan high dam resivoir should offset the majority of water concerns displayed here concerning the renaissance resivoir fill time. In short, the people of Egypt do not need to be concerned as there is a massive resivoir already established right at their southern border.
Beavis, is this a god dam?
Think of a random conflict... the UK is someway or another related to it lol
Dont understand the issue. Dams create retention lakes, but once that lake is full, the same amount of water that originally went down river still has to go down river. Dams dont and cant reduce water flow indefinitely.
Tell that to the Egyptians. And this dam is built 25 miles from the Sudanese boarder, which means that the Ethiopians did not intend it for irrigation, which is not possible anyway. Not much flat land in that part of Ethiopia.
7:41 African squidward?
Ethiopia was not at the table when these agreements were made and there's no reason to be bound by them. Foreigners deciding on things over which they have no control. Ethiopia should look to it's defences.
Islamofascism will never allow cooperation with non-Muslims.
You forgot to mention that China is funding the cost of the the dam’s 14 turbines, which China will be manufacturing, installing and operating; at a cost of $1.8 billion. This dam is not self-financed entirely by Ethiopia as you imply. Ethiopia is part of China’s “One Belt One Road” worldwide infrastructure building program. When it comes to funding infrastructure projects in 2nd and 3rd world counties all the roads lead to China. Ethiopia’s current debt obligations to China is +5% of its annual GDP.
14:30 "Egypt maintains the rhetoric that predicts inevitable conflict if their demands arre not met..." . What makes the Pharoahs think the Ethiopians are so terrible that they can wipe them out, such arrogance of entitlement and superiority has caused many conflicts. The Pharaohs have learnt nothing from history - DIALOGUE, DIALOGUE DIALOGUE
When matter come to cut water flow for Egypt, it will be no dialogue at all.
Nile is great river.
Lucky we have the UN to arbitrate such problems -- and figure out how they can get their share.
I love it how statists can only think of state control of the river. Privatize it, all of it. All resource and pollution problems are the result of the tragedy of the commons.
Wasn't there a spark of Civil war recently?
Keep watching, They will fuck everything up. Pipe dreams and a money pit
Do not cry,85% from Ethiopia and pay money no for free. Perhaps go to Saudi and try to get oil for free. The Nile belongs to just for Ethiopia
Enjoyable, informative video. Not Impressed with the underhanded jabs at colonialism, settlementarianism, and western technology. I’m happy the Ethiopian people are finally getting on their feet.
The colonial era treaty is no more accepted. The British has played a dumb game to utilize 100% of the water to produce the cotton they need for the textile factories in Manchester. It has now come a time for the equitable distribution of the natural resource and this is what Ethiopia is going for.
I GOT WEED
I GOT WEED
I GOT WEED
Don’t say Egypt is a Nile the Nile 85% come from Ethiopian Highlands 🇪🇹 so wath ??????
Also, the main customers for Ethiopian power will be Sudan and Kenya. Uganda is actually a competitor to Ethiopia as it too is building more dams on its Nile and I do not see how Ethiopia would sell to Tanzania without passing through either Uganda (not really as Uganda plans to do the same and will clearly not allow a competitor to pass through. Plus, Uganda has no border with Ethiopia, those power lies would have to pass through a very unstable South Sudan to reach Uganda in the first place) or Kenya(whose power lines from Ethiopia will end somewhere in the Central Rift )
The problem with Egypt is that it tries to impose the Nile Agreement on nations that did not exist at the time. The Nile Agreement was between The British and Egypt. Kenya was British East Africa, Uganda was the Uganda Protectorate, Tanzania was British Tanganyika (and previously German East Africa alongside Rwanda and Burundi which were handed over to the Belgians just two years prior). None of those entities exist today and trying to impose the same conditions does not wash. No nation adheres to colonial era agreements made not by the locals but the colonial power, ever. And Ethiopia was BTW never a party to the Nile Agreement ,ever. Even though Ethiopia was an independent nation at the time. In the end, Egypt will either have to drop its stance on the Nile and negotiate with downstream nations or it will face a united downstream pact where Uganda, Ethiopia Kenya and Tanzania continue to draw on the sources of the Nile and end up signing a defence pact that even Egypt, as powerful as it is may not want to face. Also Egypt needs to look at what Israel has done and build giant desalination plants along its Mediterranean and Red Sea coasts and also recycle the water from sewer plants for things like watering gardens, washing cars and the likes, instead of relying on the Nile.
good luck with that. have you ever been there?
Sir James may and two other blokes discovered the source of the Nile in 3 estate cars!
Yes, Egypt depends on the Nile. But, Sudan has more Nile water on land than Egypt. So, Sudan is the Nile. Please, fix the border line between Sudan and Egypt. The Hala’ib Triangle belongs to Sudan. Be objective.
Finally you have raised great Recommendations ....but as I see Egypt is self centered country . As I saw from another video nile water was shared to another country and used highly wastefully ...Egyptians want to control Nile by themselves ...
sounds like eygpt needs to build a dam
great vid
You play with map between Sudan and Egypt, you either give Egypt Halaib or beer Altaweel, you can't give Egypt both,
I would say the bigger problem for Egypt is not "only" the "short-time" problem filling of the reservoir, but even worse the "forever" situation that it can and will regulate the flow level. No more floods. For Ethiopia, it's most beneficial, that the amount that passes through is steady over the whole year, so that all turbines can produce energy all the time. But no more floods destroy the cycle of Nile flooding the land around it, fertilizing it.
What a DAMN problem
Ethiopia:DAM Egypt:DAMN
7:35. Ethiopia doesn't export enough food etc to pay for these projects. but the CCP needs food,cheap food so....hiding behind the drapes are CCP operatives.
Thanks for sharing your video. Your message is excellent as far as dealing with brothers in the African countries. We should not ignore the Organization of the African Unity (OAU) charter and what it says about borders after decolonization and here let me stress that Ethiopians are and should be the first and only beneficiaries of the Blue Nile. The second point, your analysis of filing up of the dam is not realistic as it usually takes 4 to 7 years in the case at hand and the question are the intentions of the Ethiopian government as far as the development plans are concerned. An accelerated filling can only bring bloody conflicts. Ethiopia needs development plans such as the GERD; - YES AND IT IS A RIGHT, HOWEVER DOING IT AT THE EXPANSE OF THE SECURITY OF ITS NEIGHBORS IS A CRIME, SPECIALLY WHEN THEY WANT TO PRODUCE RAPIDELY TWICE AS MUCH ELECTRICITY THAN THEY NEED. They should be reasonable and cooperative with them and let nature take ITS COURSE AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE WEATHER. THIS SUMMER (2020) SHOULD HAVE BEEN A LESSON FOR ALL when more than usual rains came down with divesting floods in Sudan. Incidentally, I some REAL and HONEST statistics from the Ethiopian side as far as their actual WATER STORAGE. War in the area can only benefit only one entity in the region and that is the Zionist Settler Colony in Palestine which seems to be "in Bed" with Trump, Sissi and Abiy. Cooperation within the framework of the Organization of the African Unity is key. Governments will go; but the Ethiopian, Sudanese and Egyptians peoples are there to stay.
And if the civilization of Egypt is no more how sure are we that our civilization will last without cooperation therefore we better learn from history in order to go forward
"Now are there any dam questions ? " "Yeah, where can I get some damn bait ?"
i wouldn't trust NO construction done in any african country.. those folks aren't that bright.
Ocean? I though Med was a sea.
Ethiopinans Nile
The frequent park nearly sigh because ounce developmentally wish amidst a gainful thrill. measly, deafening wedge
No mention of the environmental impact to non-human animals. They need to add family planning to the agenda otherwise the cycle of: population growth > famine> agricultural improvement> population growth > famine and so on, will end in devastating water wars, the complete desertification of the area and permanent loss of wildlife. All countries developed or not need to start talking about population. Improved medicine, lower infant mortality, longer life spans are all great but they come at a cost.