The Tripartite National Committee on the Renaissance Dam (TNCRD) began on Saturday in Cairo its 17th meeting to discuss the findings of the initial report of the two French consultancy firms, BRL and Artelia. The firms were tasked with assessing the possible impact of the dam on downstream countries. Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mohamed Abdel Aty represented Egypt in the two-day meeting which was also attended by his Ethiopian and Sudanese counterparts. The meeting follows the outcome of the 16th meeting, held in Ethiopia in October. It aims to resolve the outstanding controversial issues, according to a statement from the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation. The controversial issues include the reservoir of the dam and Egypt's share of the Nile river's water. In October, Abdel Aty visited the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), and saw the dam assistant, the lake of the dam, and the dam's power plant. According to a statement from his office, the minister ensured that Ethiopia did not begin filling the dam's reservoir yet. The GERD, formerly known as the Millennium Dam, is under construction in the Benishangul-Gumuz region of Ethiopia, on the Blue Nile river. Its construction began in April 2011. However, Egypt has expressed concerns that the construction of the GERD could negatively affect its historic share of the Nile's water, 55 billion square metres, which it has had access to since a 1959 agreement with Sudan.
