CAIRO, May 16, 2018 - Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan reasserted their commitment to the Declaration of Principles agreement on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam with. The Declaration of Principles agreement was signed in Khartoum in March 2015. During the nine-party meeting of the Egyptian, Sudanese and Ethiopian irrigation and foreign ministers as well as intelligence chiefs in Addis Ababa on Wednesday, the officials agreed to convene regular biannual summit meetings of the leaders of the three countries, with the summit being held in their respective capitals on a rotational basis. The Ministers also discussed the best way forward to put into effect the directives of the leaders of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan which were set out in Sharm el-Sheikh to establish a fund for infrastructure projects to provide proposals for joint infrastructure and development projects in the three countries. The Ministers also agreed to bring together high officials from the three countries to work out the most suitable method for the establishment of the fund. The two countries have also accepted Egypt's invitation to host a meeting of senior officials from the three countries in Cairo on July 3-4, 2018. As for the preliminary report of the consultant firm, the current chairman of the Tripartite Technical Committee will provide, exceptionally and out of the committee's work style, the consultancy firm with a number of queries and observations regarding the introductory report which is concerned with the technical file of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and its effect on the Nile water share of the three countries. The consultancy firm will submit within three weeks its written reply to the queries and observations in accordance with an agreement signed between it and the three countries as well as the Consultancy Services Agreement. The consultancy firm's written reply will then be discussed during a ministerial meeting of the tripartite technical committee which will also be attended by the consultancy firm. This ministerial cimmittee meeting will be followed by a nine-party meeting in Cairo on June 18-19, 2018, in the presence of the consultancy firm, to review the report of the TNC. The officials also agreed to establish a national independent scientific study group comprising 15 members from the three countries. Each country will nominate five members. The group shall hold nine meetings, each of three days, by rotation according to the attached schedule. The Independent Group will submit the outcome of its discussions within three months by August 15, 2018, for the consideration of the water ministers of the three countries who will report to the nine-party meeting. Photocopy of the joint communique released by the Three countries after the nine-fold meeting in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa:
