(ANSA) - KHARTOUM, 03 JAN - Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt have agreed to resume the dialogue on the long-standing dispute over the gigantic Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (Gerd), the granddiga that Addis Ababa has been building on the Blue Nile since 2011 and that Cairo and Khartoum fear it will damage their water supply, which depends largely on the Nile and which is creating tension between the three African countries bathed by the river.
The three countries held a videoconference meeting today in the presence of officials from South Africa, a country that holds the rotating presidency of the African Union (AU).
"We have concluded that this week will be dedicated to bilateral meetings between the three countries with experts and observers," said the Sudan's water minister, explaining that tripartite meetings, including fun, will resume on 10 January.
Ethiopia considers the great dam essential for its electricity supply and ensures that there will be no significant variations in the flow of the Nile, of which the Blue is a tributary.
But Sudan (the Blue and White Nile join at the gates of Khartoum) fears that it will not get enough drinking water or irrigation, with the potential risk to the lives of "thousands of people".
Similar concern is Egypt, which depends on the waters of the great river for 97% of its water supply.
(HANDLE).