Title: Hydropolitics in the Nile Ｒiver Basin: History and Ｒeality

Author：ZHANG Jin

Department of Arabic Language and Culture, School of Foreign Languages, Peking University

Arab World Studies, Volume 2, March, 2019

Abstract:

The power relationship among countries in the same basin is the determining factor in the allocation of trans-border water resources． Ｒemaining as the strongest power in the Nile Basin，Egypt has attained a position of hydro-hegemony in the basin and maintained the water allocation regime that best served its national interests． However，power of the upstream countries has been rising since the end of the 20th century，challenging this regime． The upstream countries have begun to conduct their own water exploitation projects，which has changed the picture of water exploitation in the basin．At the same time，the downstream countries diverge greatly from the upstream countries on the water utilization issue，which has become more obvious． While the downstream riparians insist that their acquired rights to the Nile water are unnegotiable，the upstream ones assert that all the riparians have equal rights to it． This dispute impedes progress on the comprehensive legal regime of the basin． Due to the lack of such a regime，the riparians tend to exploit water resources in their territories unilaterally．The Nile Basin is facing more uncertainty due to rising demands for water and unilateral water exploitation projects．

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