08 December 2015

Sudanese President Weighs in on Renaissance Dam - calls for cooperation

While Sudan has seen decades of ongoing conflict, when it comes to Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam, President Omar Al-Bashir calls for cooperation. Although the Ahram online article focuses on a contested area between Egypt and Sudan, the article starts with the President's call of attention on the Renaissance Dam continuing in a peaceful cooperative negotiation. A recent article in Al-Monitor suggests problems with negotiations as the three countries ended the 9th round of meetings in Cairo with no clear solution. 

The quotes in the previous Al-Monitor article from prof. Rawia Tafik point to a need for crisis resolution. Personally, I do not see a crisis, I see a continued negotiation. The role of academics is beneficial to the ongoing discourse when we remain objective and unbiased. The time investment the three governments are making is a part of cooperative processes over a shared resource - I do not think anyone wants snap judgement over this delicate matter, nor quick agreements with compromise when so many people's livelihoods are at stake. 

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