Ministers and government technocrats from the ten Nile Basin countries raised concern that transboundary investments along the River Nile water resources have either stalled or not going on as planned because of a lack of financial resources. Water and Environment Ministry Permanent Secretary, Alfred Okot Okidi, speaking on behalf of Uganda said the investments would have ensured benefits like food production, energy generation and water security.
The growing population, climate change, water for irrigation combined with desire for electricity generation are new challenges to negotiators around transboundary water resources in Africa like elsewhere in the World.The Global Water Partnership says the first step is to train African lawyers, water officers and diplomats on international Water Law.
The Executive Director Nile Basin Initiative-NBI Innocent Ntabana said the challenges of water security in the Nile Basin are rising with population growth and climatic changes. He said those challenges could lead to conflict situations if the Nile resources are not well planned and managed.
Dr Callist Tindimugaya, the Commissioner, Water Resources Planning and Regulation says the study expected to begin before the end of the year, will also quantify the amount of water needed to have oil out of the ground.
Uganda is eager to see that all Nile riparian states sign and ratify the Cooperative Framework Agreement CFA, also known as the Entebbe Agreement. The agreement outlines principles, rights and obligations for cooperative management and development of the Nile Basin water resources.
Experts from the Global Water Partnership say that countries with shared water resources like River Nile need to strengthen their negotiation skills on how to apply international water law whenever disagreements arise over shared water resources.
The Ministers say implementation of the projects will foster cooperation among member countries and avoid conflicts over trans-boundary water resources.
Countries with shared water resources need to understand and implement treaties and agreements on transboundary water bodies for better cooperation and to avert likely conflicts.
