The Ethiopia Minister for Water and Energy Hon. Dr. Eng. Habtamu Itefa has commended NELSAP for establishing a Dam Safety project for the Nile Basin Countries saying the project will provide much needed support to the countries. The Hon. Minister noted that whereas dams are a central component of water infrastructure, safety issues must be addressed from their planning, construction to operations phases.
The Hon Minister was speaking to dam safety experts and high level government officials from the Nile Basin Countries in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia during the first Regional Dam Safety workshop held in the first week on May 2022. The dam safety project is funded by the World Bank (CIWA Trust) under the Nile Cooperation for Climate Resilience (NCCR) program.
In his opening address, Hon. Dr. Eng Habtamu Itefa observed that whereas most Nile Basin countries do not have minerals or petroleum resources, the region is blessed with abundant surface water which can be sufficient for all basin countries if properly managed. He noted that Ethiopia, like much of the basin, is generally water deficient, due to un even distribution of water resources in different parts of the country, and water storage, principally through dams is essential.
“Properly planned dams can be a blessing, can provide people with clean energy, and water for domestic and livestock use and for irrigation, and can control floods. However if not well planned and managed can be a curse to the people,” Hon. Dr. Eng Itefa said.
He added that dam safety requires commitment at the highest level of decision making so that planning, design, construction and operation of dams are technically and socially acceptable to make them safe. He observed that cooperation and sharing of information in dam management, especially in areas with cascade of dams is essential to minimize risk of dam failures.
Speaking at the same event, the NELSAP Regional Coordinator Dr. Eng. Isaac Alukwe explained, “The specific objective of the Dam Safety project is to increase technical capacity on dam safety in the Nile Basin region, reduce the likelihood of dam failures, reduce the potential consequences of dam failures, promote public awareness, and establish and strengthen national dam safety units in each Nile Basin country.”
The meeting brought together high level government officials and experts responsible for dam safety management at development and operational phases from across the Nile Basin countries.