Ethiopia officially inaugurated the $5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) today, crowning a 14-year project that now stands as Africa’s largest hydroelectric power plant.
Capable of producing 5,150 megawatts, the dam marks a major leap in Ethiopia’s economic and energy ambitions.
The inauguration, held near the Blue Nile and attended by regional leaders, was heralded by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed as a symbol of national unity and African achievement.
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“The renaissance dam is built to prosper, to electrify the region, to change the history of Black people,” he declared.
Despite its celebratory tone, the dam has deepened tensions with downstream nations, especially Egypt, which depends on the Nile for around 90 percent of its water. Cairo has long argued that the project threatens its water security, particularly during droughts.
Egypt and Sudan have repeatedly pressed for a binding agreement on how GERD will be filled and operated, citing concerns over historical treaties that favoured their water rights.
In a strongly worded statement, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry dismissed the dam’s completion as “unlawful,” accusing Addis Ababa of pursuing a “fait accompli” strategy to consolidate water control.
It further charged that Ethiopia’s unilateral actions violated international water-sharing norms.
Egypt has also begun strengthening its own water policy, investing in wastewater recycling and improving irrigation to shore up water resilience, while calling for renewed negotiations under international frameworks.
Independent analyses suggest that emergency disruptions have yet to occur, largely thanks to a combination of careful reservoir filling during wet seasons and favorable rainfall.
Still, experts warn that a prolonged drought could drastically alter the flow to downstream countries, unless a legally binding operational agreement is reached.
