The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) Project in Northeast Africa
This research project looks at the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Africa’s largest hydroelectric power plant, built on the Blue Nile in Ethiopia. The Nile is a vital lifeline for millions of people, and the paper explains why the dam has become one of the region’s most debated projects. It weighs the dam’s benefits, such as more electricity, better control of the river’s flow and new chances for regional energy trade, against its risks. These include water security for Egypt and Sudan downstream and the political influence that control of the river can give Ethiopia. The project also looks at the roles of the United Nations, the African Union, the United States and China in the dispute. It concludes that the dam’s benefits can outweigh its risks only if the countries that share the Nile agree on how to manage its water together.
Mentored and Supervised by: Konstantina Andrikopoulou, LLM, University of Amsterdam, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic, Intern
Research & Writing by CLC’s students: Myrto Barbouni, Zoi Chrysostomou, Melina Kalogeropoulou
