Ethiopia dismisses Egypt’s proposal on Nile River dam project

Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry has dismissed Egypt’s latest proposal regarding a massive Nile River dam project as being “against the sovereignty of Ethiopia.”

The sharply worded statement on Friday came shortly after Egypt said a new round of talks over the filling and operation of the soon-to-be-finished $5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam failed to achieve progress. The talks had resumed after more than a year.

Egypt fears Africa’s largest hydroelectric dam could reduce its share of the Nile, which serves as a lifeline for the country’s 100 million people, AP said. Ethiopia has roughly the same population and says the dam will help its development as one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies.

Ethiopia’s new statement said that “various new and harmful ideas that could harm the trust developed between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan should stop.”