political and economic revolutions on the nile
TRANSCRIPT
Political and economic revolutions on the Nile: when water mix with fire
Ana Elisa Cascão, SIWIPresentation to DIIS Seminar,
19 March 2013
The stage
Multiple changes in the Nile Basin region
Political and Economic revolutions
2
... a revolution
... an independence and a new state
... double-digit economic growth figures
... increasing demands for food and energy
... new infrastructures, including large-scale dams
... new large-scale land deals
Impact of the political-economic changes in transboundary water management/cooperation
Transboundary Management/Allocation• National development first• Water enough to all developments?• Transboundary impacts?
Transboundary Cooperation• NBI: Transitional institutional
framework• Lack of basin-wide legal agreement• ≠ ’Languages’ and Timing
’Industrial’ revolution time
Agenda:• National economic development on top• ’Growth’ is the slogan• Race for natural resources• Political benefits outweight financial/social/
environmental costs• Perception of risk decreased
Challenges:• Limited regional perspective (on water)• New financiers and financial ’contracts’ • New ways of interacting with external actors
Regional growth corridors (including water?)
• Roads• Railways• Trade• Oil pipelines• Power transmission
lines• Etc...
Why not water?
Who is financing development(s)?Who is financing cooperation?
...and several private companies from US/EU
... and the Nile riparians countries themselves ... and the Nile riparians countries themselves
Recommendations to ’donors’...
