Established in 1999, the initiative brings together the countries of the Nile Basin to develop the river cooperatively, share important socio-economic benefits and promote peace and security in the region. While most of the river`s water quality is within acceptable values, several hot spots are mainly found in irrigation canals and drainages. The sources of pollutants come from agricultural, industrial and household waste. There are 36 industries that channel their pollution sources directly to the Nile and 41 to irrigation canals. These types of industries are: chemical, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, fertilizers, food, metal, mining, oil and soap, pulp and paper, refractory, textile and wood. There are more than 90 agricultural effluents that are discharged into the Nile, which also contain industrial wastewater. [19] Water exceeds Community standards for faecal contamination and there is high salinization and saline intrusion into the delta. Salinization occurs when salts accumulate in the soil. The soil cannot retain water, which prevents the growth of anything. Saline intrusion is when the soil is saturated with salt water. The northeastern region of the Nile Delta has a high rate of pancreatic cancer, which is thought to be the return of high concentrations of heavy metals and organchlorine pesticides in soil and water. Exposure to cadmium is best known through smoking, although exposure is thought to be due to contact with heavy metals and pesticides in soil and water in this region. [20] Schistosomiasis (a disease caused by parasitic worms) has been detected in irrigation canals with benthic cyanobacteria that form mats.

[1] [21] Only three countries voted against: China, Turkey and Burundi – all along the major rivers. China is Asia`s water tower. Its Tibetan plateau is the source of the Indus, Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Salween and Mekong rivers. But in refusing to sign the treaty, China claimed it had “indisputable territorial sovereignty over the portions of international rivers that flow through its territory.” There are many reasons to be optimistic. Since 1948, there have been 37 acute water conflicts, while about 295 international water agreements have been negotiated and signed during the same period. These include the UNECE Water Convention, a legal framework for transboundary water cooperation worldwide, which is only open to countries from all over Europe, but has been available worldwide since 2003. However, about two-thirds of the world`s cross-border flows do not have a cooperative management framework. As we recently celebrated Earth Day, it is important that we reflect on the importance of natural resources like the Nile and understand why they are so important, especially for Africa and its long-term development. In fact, 160 million people depend on the waters of this important river for their living.

That is why the conservation, conservation and exploitation of the waters and resources of the Nile is a common goal for all. In a speech in Vienna last month, Grey pointed out that India rarely tells Bangladesh which flows are coming down the Corridor. This results in disruptions in agriculture and unnecessary damage and death due to flooding. Similarly, he believes that a better distribution of the Nile River could allay Egyptian fears about the ability of dams upstream of the Nile to interrupt their vital stocks. But in reality, Grey says, there is so much water in the Nile that in East Africa, you could take as much water from the river as you want, and Egypt would never notice the difference. It`s dangerous. Guinea is threatening to barricade the Niger River, which could dry up the Inner Niger Delta, a wet jewel on the outskirts of the Sahara in neighboring Mali. . . .