The Honorable Steven T. Mnuchin
Secretary of the treasury
Department of U.S. Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C.
03/09/ 2020
Re: The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam
Dear Secretary Mnuchin:
On behalf of the Houston Forum for Democracy in Ethiopia, I write with urgency regarding your recent mediation efforts involving Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan over the Grand Renaissance Dam (GERD) under construction in Western Ethiopia.
The United States Government stood on the right side of history when Ethiopia began the road to democracy two years ago after several years of anti-government protests, just as Ethiopia stood by the United States in the fight against terrorism, the Korean War, and other international issues. We expressed our appreciation of the U.S. diplomatic support of Ethiopia’s transitional efforts to Ambassador Tibor Nagy, Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, when he visited with us in Houston, Texas, about a year ago.
We also appreciate your desire to oversee the talks among Ethiopian, Egyptian, Sudanese governments over the filling of the GERD. However, during the last round of negotiations, it was widely reported that your role as a mediator has shifted to one of an arbitrator. Your mediation went further into pushing the Ethiopian delegation to sign on to an agreement that, in essence, resembles the colonial period water-sharing treaty of 1929 between Great Britain and its former colonies Egypt and Sudan, or the 1959 agreement between Sudan and Egypt. These treaties, to which Ethiopia was not a party, denied Ethiopia any water rights in its own territory. Egypt is now trying to use the full weight of the U.S. Government to control Ethiopia’s water, something it had repeatedly failed to do by force in the 19th century. Any push of the Ethiopian government along this line would galvanize millions of Ethiopians to rise against it and will set back the fledgling democracy that we all hoped will change lives in the country. Note that every Ethiopian, from shoeshiners to business owners, are saving from their meager income to finance the GERD because of Egypt’s influence to block international funding.
Moreover, any lasting solution should include the other Nile River Basin countries that have signed on the Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA) based on the principle of equitable use of water, replacing the colonial treaties. Some upstream countries, such as Uganda, have already announced their plan to build their
respective dams out of economic necessity. It is a matter of time that all will do the same.
GERD has the potential of becoming a tremendous boost for the Ethiopian economy where a sizable portion of the population lives under poverty: It gives light to over 60 million Ethiopians, generates foreign currency earnings, and makes possible fishery and tourism in the area.
Ethiopians have always seen Egyptians as brothers and sisters, and their desire has never been to control the flow of the Blue Nile River but rather lift their country out of poverty through energy development. In fact, world experts, including from one of the parties in this mediation, Sudan, say the regulation of the water flow by the GERD would eliminate the annual Nile flood, making the water flow reach Sudan and Egypt seasonably stable. It will also cut evaporation rates, making more water available for use to downstream countries.
Hence, Egypt’s opposition to GERD is not about the water flow per se but rather about its hegemonic power and influence in the region; it views the project as an affront to its grand project, currently under construction, of transforming Egypt to a regional hub that exports electricity to Europe and water the Gulf-owned mega projects on farmlands in the southern part of the country near Lake Nasser. In a nutshell, Egypt wants Ethiopians to continue to die of starvation and civil war while it continues to prosper at their expense.
Mr. Secretary, the statement from your office, essentially ‘commanding’ Ethiopia not to start the partial filling of the dam before signing your draft agreement that binds the country for generations from using its own resources, is both unfair and immoral. It has also emboldened Egypt to pose a military threat against Ethiopia and the Arab League to issue a one-sided statement that opened a rift between Arab and African countries. We, therefore, urge you to consider placing on hold your mediation effort and let Ethiopia and Sudan solve their issue with Egypt in cooperation with the African Union, as this is entirely an African problem.
Respectfully,
*The above letter was modified and sent to Texas senators and select local congressional members for their support.
Dr. Mesfin Genanaw, President
Houston Forum for Democracy in Ethiopia
Houston, Texas. Email: Houstonfde@Gmail.com
