Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said Saturday his country supports the Ethiopian peoples' right to development through the Renaissance Dam but also stressed that the Nile River is the Egyptian peoples' only source of potable water, a presidential statement read. In his meeting with the irrigation and agricultural ministers, al-Sisi said that a "spirit of positivity should prevail over the negotiations between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan. Irrigation Minister Mohamed Abdel-Ati told the president that the impact studies would include the mechanisms for the filing of the dam's reservoir. Egypt has long maintained that the Ethiopian dam – currently under construction on the Blue Nile in Ethiopia's highlands – would affect its supply of Nile water. Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia are currently conducting impact studies on the dam. It would also include guidelines on how to operate the Ethiopian dam in coordination with other dams in Egypt and Sudan, so it would not negatively affect any of the three countries. In May, Ethiopian Communications Minister Getachew Reda, speaking to Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper, said the dam has become a "reality" and that "no matter what happens, things will not change." He added that 50 percent of construction work on the dam had been completed and most of the dam's civil engineering projects were finished. "When turbines are installed, 70 percent of the project will be complete," he said. source: Ahram online
