The recently formed Egyptian parliamentary committee headed by the Undersecretary of parliament Soliman Wahdan to discuss the impact of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD,) will meet Sunday to discuss the measures necessary to protect Egypt’s rights over the Nile river.
Wahdan said in a press statement that Sunday’s meeting would discuss the statements delivered before parliament on 9 October by Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Irrigation and Water Resources Minister Mohamed Abdel Ati, and Housing minister Assem Al-Gazzar.
Wahdan did not comment on the ministerial statement, saying that he can only do so after concluding the meeting which will be held with heads of parliament’s national security, irrigation, foreign relations, and agriculture committees, noting that the special committee is not required to provide its response in a specific time
He added that the meeting will develop a plan for the mechanism of discussion over data, and will invite the government and experts in its meetings to answer all queries raised by members before the report’s preparation.
Hesham El-Hosari, head of parliament’s agriculture committee, told reporters that the ad hoc committee was expected to grant President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi a “mandate” to take all the measures necessary to protect Egypt’s rights in Nile water.
In their statements before parliament, Madbouly accused Ethiopia of violating the Declaration of Principles signed by presidents of Egypt, Sudan, and Prime Minister of Ethiopia on 23 March 2015 and opting to act unilaterally on the GERD. While Shoukry criticised Ethiopia for rejecting all the submitted proposals that would prevent the GERD from negatively affecting Egypt’s annual quota of River Nile water, estimated at 55m cubic metres.
