Nile Basin Cooperation: A Review of the Literature

Two interrelated developments can be identified in the Nile basin, during the last decade: an emphasis on potential conflict over the Nile waters on the one hand, and an evolving process of basin-wide cooperation on the other. The history of the Nile basin is dominated by tensions and conflicts. Relationships between major Nile basin countries are usually described in terms of mutual distrust and confrontation. The Nile basin, moreover, has frequently been referred to by many observers and analysts as an example where conflict over water resources as a result of water scarcity will lead to armed confrontation. Recent years, on the other hand, have witnessed a growing cooperation among the basin countries. The Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) is a case in point. All the ten countries that share the Nile waters agreed, for the first time, to cooperate on development of the Nile basin. This is a significant step, although a number of serious problems and challenges remain. Many donors have made formal pledges to support the initiative. This paper reviews literature on the Nile basin cooperation and issues related to this process, focusing on more recent publications. The literature on utilization and management of the Nile waters related to basin-wide cooperation efforts has been growing fast during the last decade. At least seven books have been published on the subject between the years 2000 to 2002, while the number of papers presented at conferences and articles in various journals and on the Internet is enormous. This review discusses and covers a wide range of issues, which include: debate on water scarcity and its potential consequences in general, and its implications for the Nile basin countries in particular; legal aspects of utilization of the Nile waters focusing on the UN Watercourse Convention of 1997; conflicts and major attempts at cooperation; divergent views and interests of the basin countries; and challenges and prospects of the recent basin-wide cooperation. Dahilon Yassin Mohamoda has a MSc in Development Studies from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). He is particularly interested in political, economic and social developments in Nile basin countries. He recently joined the Centre for Development and Environment at the University of Oslo, where he has been working on this paper.

Keywords: Nile river, Water resources, Regional cooperation, Literature surveys