The 1929 Nile Waters Agreement. The Exchange of Notes between Great Britain (acting for Sudan and her East African dependencies) and Egypt in regard to the use of the waters of the Nile for irrigation purposes (“The 1929 Nile Waters Agreement”) is the most controversial of all the Nile Water agreements. It is also the most important. According to Batstone (1959), it is the dominating feature of legal relationships concerning the distribution and utilisation of the Nile waters today. Godana (1985) adds that the agreement” “has become the basis of all subsequent water allocations (but) has been viewed differently by various writers” (page 176). The purpose of the 1929 Nile Waters agreement was to guarantee and facilitate an increase in the volume of water reaching Egypt. The Agreement was based on the outcome of political negotiations between Egypt and Great Britain in 1920s, and in particular on the report of the 1925 Nile Waters Commission, which was attached to the agreement as an integral part thereof. The Agreement provided as follows: (i) Save with the previous agreement of the Egyptian Government, no irrigation or power works, or measures are to be constructed or taken on the River Nile or its branches, or on the lakes from which it flows in the Sudan or in countries under British administration, which would, in such a manner as to entail prejudice to the interests of Egypt, either reduce the quantities of water arriving in Egypt or modify the date of its arrival, or lower its level. (ii) In case the Egyptian Government decides to construct in the Sudan any works on the river and its branches, or to take any measure with a view to increasing the water supply for the benefit of Egypt, they will agree beforehand with the local authorities on the measures to be taken to safeguard local interests. The construction, maintenance and administration of the above mentioned works shall be under the direct control of the Egyptian Government. The Agreement also expressed recognition by Great Britain, of Egypt’s “natural and historic rights in the waters of the Nile”, even though the precise content of these rights was not elaborated.
Posted on: Sat, 01 Jun 2013 06:50:18 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015