1. Political and economic revolutions on the Nile:
when water mix with fire
Ana Elisa Cascão, SIWI
Presentation to DIIS Seminar,
19 March 2013

2. The stage

3. Multiple changes in the Nile Basin region
Political and Economic revolutions
2

4. ... a revolution

5. ... an independence and a new state

6. ... double-digit economic growth figures

7. ... increasing demands for food and energy

8. ... new infrastructures,
including large-scale dams

9. ... new large-scale land deals

10. Impact of the political-economic changes in
transboundary water management/cooperation
Transboundary Management/Allocation
• National development first
• Water enough to all developments?
• Transboundary impacts?
Transboundary Cooperation
• NBI: Transitional institutional framework
• Lack of basin-wide legal agreement
• ≠ ’Languages’ and Timing

11. ’Industrial’ revolution time
Agenda:
• National economic development on top
• ’Growth’ is the slogan
• Race for natural resources
• Political benefits outweight financial/social/
environmental costs
• Perception of risk decreased
Challenges:
• Limited regional perspective (on water)
• New financiers and financial ’contracts’
• New ways of interacting with external actors

12. Regional growth corridors (including water?)
• Roads
• Railways
• Trade
• Oil pipelines
• Power
transmission lines
• Etc...
Why not water?

13. Who is financing development(s)?
Who is financing cooperation?
...and several private companies from US/EU
... and the Nile riparians countries themselves
... and the Nile riparians countries themselves

14. Recommendations to ’donors’...

15. ’Right to Development’:
Yes or Not?
Thanks for your attention!
ana.cascao@siwi.org