Without joint planning and investment, Nile Basin countries miss-out on opportunities of development that benefits the Nile people, says Sudan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
“The event’s theme ‘Joint Investments on the Nile for Regional Transformation’ is one of the key elements that needs to be in place in order to achieve sustainable development goal number six on ‘clean water and sanitation’,”said Asma Mohamad Abdalla Sudan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Speaking during the Regional Nile Day 2020 celebrations in Khartoum on Saturday, she called upon development partners and the private sector to support the Nile Basin Initiative in its efforts to realize regional investments.
The Nile Basin Initiative is a regional intergovernmental partnership of ten Nile Basin countries, namely; Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. It was established on February 22, 1999 by Ministers in charge of Water Affairs in the Nile Basin countries.
The Executive Director of the Nile Basin Initiative Secretariat, Prof. Seifeldin Hamad Abdalla, noted that the key objective of the event is to highlight some of the achievements on the investments, with emphasis on the need to accelerate implementation of the NBI-prepared investment projects. The various projects worth more than $6.5 billion are key to supporting Member States in their quest to meet the growing demand for water, food and energy.
Among other things, the annual Nile Day event provides an opportunity for the various stakeholders to celebrate the achievements of Nile Basin Initiative as well as the various cultures in the Nile Basin, in terms of cultural dance and traditional cuisine.
NBI is the only basin-wide institution mandated to facilitate the cooperative development and management of the shared Nile Basin water resources on behalf of the 10-Member States, for win-win benefits and to promote regional peace and security.
NBI’s programmes and projects are guided by its 10-Year Strategy (2017 – 2027), which outlines six goals, namely, water security, energy security, food security, environmental sustainability, climate change adaptation, and strengthening transboundary water governance.