Mewtee, 4157 Ranaka Street, Randfontein (2025)

03/12/2025

Fossil hunters find tracks of animals from about 3 million years ago – a first in South Africa.

South Africa is well known for its fossil heritage, a record of plants and animals that tells us what the world was like long ago.

Over the past 15 years, our research group at the African Centre for Coastal Palaeoscience at Nelson Mandela University has studied some of these ancient species by examining the tracks and traces they left during the Pleistocene Epoch (a period from about 1.8 million years ago to 11,700 years ago, sometimes known as the “Ice Ages”). We have identified more than 350 vertebrate tracksites along the coast from this time. These animals left their tracks and traces in sandy surfaces that hardened into rock over time. The oldest fossil track we’ve found is around 400,000 years old.

All this time we were aware that there might be more, even older trace fossils to find further inland. We knew that up to 30km inland there were cemented dunes formed from wind-blown sand, probably around 3 million years old. These dunes, which are now rock, are known as the Wankoe Formation.

However, there were problems with finding any fossils there. There seemed to be a relatively limited number of suitable rock outcrops, showing what used to be dune surfaces. And often those that we did find were eroded and calcified: good for finding caves and mineral formations (like stalagmites), but not for finding tracks – or so it seemed. In addition, much of the Wankoe Formation is on private property, and permission would be needed to access potential sites.

We realised that to find any fossil traces we would have to focus on the areas where the original rock layers were well preserved and visible. Then one of our team members, Given Banda, identified what appeared to be a trackway on an inland surface near his home community. This was a spur to action, and next, when staying in the Grootbos Private Nature Reserve to research nearby coastal tracks, we chanced upon more inland track-like features. A more thorough reconnaissance in the reserve followed, and the more we looked, the more tracks we found, including one that’s certainly a trackway (see photo above).

The results of our findings were recently published.

No vertebrate tracks had previously been identified in the Wankoe Formation. We have found that the formation is rich in fossils and that vertebrate tracks are common there. Furthermore, these seem to be the first recorded Pliocene vertebrate tracks described from southern Africa. The Pliocene was an epoch from about 5.3 million to 2.6 million years ago. These findings therefore add to what we know about ancient environments.

New treasure trove of fossil tracks and traces

The Wankoe Formation track discoveries are important for three main reasons:

they might tell us more about body fossils

we might find traces of human ancestor species

the tracks are raised rather than indented, which is rare.

Firstly, there is a wonderful Pliocene body fossil site just a few hundred kilometres away. Known as Langebaanweg or, more popularly, the West Coast Fossil Park, the site boasts a vast array of extinct creatures. The body fossil record and trace fossil (ichnological record can not only complement each other, but have the potential to yield new findings that constructively inform and enrich each other.

For example, on the coast we have found trackways of giraffe and giant tortoises, that were not known to inhabit the region based on the body fossil record. We hope that we can complement the body fossil record with our ichnological findings. Already we have identified a tracksite that suggests a possible wolverine trackmaker, consistent with the finding of an extinct wolverine at Langebaanweg.

Secondly, when we started work on the younger deposits on the coast 15 years ago, we knew that we needed to be on the lookout for hominin tracksites, as we were aware that ancestral hominins had been there at the time. Since then, we have found more than 20 such sites. These make up by far the largest archive of hominin tracksites more than 40,000 years old in the world.

We can try to apply similar thinking to our Pliocene discoveries inland from the coast.

Pliocene deposits are not encountered that often in Africa, and these Western Cape examples seem to be among the only ones described from southern Africa. The Laetoli site in Tanzania is globally famous for its australopithecine trackways, which remain the only tracks of these possible ancestors of our Homo genus from the Pliocene. They are also the oldest unequivocal tracks of their kind in the world.

While we have not yet found tracks that are conclusively of primate origin in the Wankoe Formation, and we do not know precisely when australopithecines may have first appeared in this region, we are aware of the potential, and need to keep exploring.

Thirdly, the tracks we are finding are different, and are special in their own right. Many of them are “pedestalled”, meaning that instead of forming hollows, they are raised above the surface.

The principle of their origin can easily be replicated on a modern dune surface, provided that the sand is slightly moist (cohesive) and a strong wind is blowing. If you walk along such a surface, you will leave your tracks in the form of depressions. But if you return an hour later, they might be raised above the surface. This is because you will have compressed underlying layers when you made your tracks, and the wind has blown the surrounding sand away but is not strong enough to remove the compressed areas below your tracks. The same principle occurs in snow, where it is much more readily observed (see photo above).

Fossilised pedestalled tracks are globally rare, and the potential for finding more of them is intriguing.

More to find?

Our subsequent explorations have continued to deliver results, and we now realise that even rocks that have been weathered can sometimes preserve tracks, sometimes in profile. (See photo: the underlying layers have been distorted by the weight of the trackmaker.)

We have also found body fossils in the form of trees, roots and bone material embedded in these layers of wind-blown, hardened sand that require further study.

It is perhaps not surprising that the dunes that now form the Wankoe Formation contained tracks on their surfaces. However, the welcome news is that despite all the calcification and weathering that has occurred, evidence of these tracks has not been obliterated.

We now realise that if we know where to look, there will be many suitable surfaces and exposures to explore. And the possibility of finding the tracks of ancestral hominins from the Pliocene forms a new “holy grail” for our research team.

Author
Charles Helm
Research Associate, African Centre for Coastal Palaeoscience, Nelson Mandela University

Disclosure statement
Charles Helm does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

07/10/2025

South Africa’s rooibos tea: can it improve digestion?

Rooibos tea, a caffeine-free drink made from the leaves of a shrub indigenous to South Africa, is part of the country’s heritage.

The rooibos plant (Aspalathus linearis) grows in the mountainous Cederberg region of South Africa’s Western Cape province. It has been traditionally harvested and consumed as a herbal tea by the Khoisan people.

Beyond making tea, the plant has been touted for its potential health benefits. Rooibos has scientifically proven effects as an antioxidant. This is a natural substance that helps to protect your body’s cells from damage caused by harmful molecules. It’s also an anti-inflammatory: a substance that reduces inflammation (redness, swelling, and pain) in the body. It can help protect the heart and liver, regulate blood sugar and improve skin health.

Commercial cultivation of rooibos began in the early 20th century. Scientific research into its health benefits started in the 1960s, when its antioxidant properties were first reported. Since then, numerous studies have explored its therapeutic potential.

I am a researcher focusing on the health-promoting properties of South African herbal teas, particularly rooibos and honeybush (Cyclopia spp.).

My latest research with colleagues suggests rooibos might offer powerful health benefits for the gut. The study aimed to compare the anti-inflammatory and barrier protective effects of an unfermented and fermented rooibos aqueous extract on intestinal porcine epithelial cells. We used pig because their intestines closely resemble human gut cells.

We showed that rooibos extracts made the lining of the gut stronger through its effect on proteins, and reduced inflammation.

These effects are important because stronger barriers and controlled inflammation are essential for protecting tissues like the gut from damage and disease.

Digestive (gut) disorders like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), constipation and dyspepsia (indigestion) affect over 40% of the global population. Females are more likely to be affected (49%) than males (36.6%). These statistics show the need for increased awareness, improved diagnosis and effective management of the problem.

Gut health has become a major area of interest for anyone looking to improve their overall wellness. A growing body of evidence links poor gut health to issues like chronic inflammation, fatigue, anxiety and autoimmune disorders. And with rising interest in natural alternatives to pharmaceuticals, people are turning to diet and drinks for help.

Green and red rooibos and epithelial intestinal cells
In our study, we explored in the laboratory how different types of rooibos tea extracts affect gut cells. Our research group wanted to understand whether rooibos could protect the gut barrier, the microscopic wall of cells that acts as a bodyguard for your intestines.

This barrier keeps harmful substances out while allowing nutrients in. When it’s not working properly, a situation often referred to as a “leaky gut”, it can contribute to digestive disorders like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and other chronic health problems.

Our study focused on two forms of rooibos:

unfermented rooibos (green), which is less processed and retains more antioxidants

fermented rooibos (red), which is more common and widely consumed.

Both kinds of tea come from the same plant, Aspalathus linearis, but the way they are processed changes their chemical composition, especially their polyphenols. These are natural compounds known for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The main polyphenols are called aspalathin and nothofagin, and aspalathin is unique to rooibos.

The three-year study investigated the anti-inflammatory properties of rooibos extracts in intestinal gut cells of pigs. Cells were first treated with the extracts for 24 hours. Then the extracts were removed and a bacterial toxin was added for an additional 24 hours. The cells’ response was then evaluated by measuring specific markers (signs) of inflammation, and the barrier integrity of the cells was assessed to determine protective effects.

Inflammation and gut protection
Here’s what we discovered:

Fermented (red) rooibos fights inflammation best. When we triggered an inflammatory response in gut cells, similar to what happens during infection or flare-ups in conditions like inflammatory bowel disease, we found that fermented rooibos was especially effective at reducing inflammation. In fact, fermented rooibos performed as well as, or even better than, dexamethasone, a common steroid drug used to reduce inflammation in the gut.

Unfermented (green) rooibos strengthens the gut barrier. While fermented rooibos tackled inflammation, it was unfermented rooibos that best protected the gut barrier. It boosted the production of proteins that keep the barrier strong. This suggests that unfermented rooibos may help prevent “leaky gut”, protecting against the entry of harmful substances into the bloodstream.

Polyphenol differences might explain the results. We think that the different effects of the teas are linked to their polyphenol content. Unfermented rooibos contains high levels of aspalathin, a potent antioxidant that helps maintain cell health and strengthen barriers. Fermented rooibos contains different polyphenols, such as eriodictyol-glucosides, that work together with other natural antioxidants in the tea to help soothe and reduce inflammation.

While rooibos is already known to be rich in antioxidants, our study is one of the first to clearly show how different types of rooibos affect gut inflammation and the gut barrier in distinct ways. Understanding this can help people make smarter dietary choices and potentially give rooibos a role in gut-friendly therapies or functional foods.

Moving forward
Our research shows that rooibos tea, both fermented and unfermented, offers unique benefits for gut health. Fermented rooibos can reduce gut inflammation and unfermented rooibos can help maintain a healthy gut lining.

Rooibos could one day be used in gut health supplements, as natural therapies for inflammatory bowel disease, or in everyday foods designed to support digestion.

This was a laboratory-based study, so more research is needed to confirm the effects in humans. But the evidence so far is promising. And considering that rooibos is safe, affordable, and already widely consumed, it’s a low-risk addition to a healthy lifestyle.

Author
Mariska Lilly
Senior Researcher, Cape Peninsula University of Technology

Disclosure statement
Mariska Lilly receives funding for research projects from The South African Rooibos Council.

07/10/2025

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06/10/2025

Tanzania’s ruling party has crushed the opposition – the elections are a mere formality.

Tanzania has conducted regular polls since the first multiparty elections in 1995. But they have often failed to meet democratic standards. The opposition has been persistently excluded and restricted, and media freedoms and civil rights have been suppressed. This pattern has come to be identified as electoral authoritarianism.

Tanzania’s ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), will seek to extend its dominance on 29 October 2025. It has been in power since independence in 1961, making it one of Africa’s longest-serving ruling parties.

I have studied Tanzania’s political party dynamics for a decade and in my view CCM’s candidate, Samia Suluhu Hassan, is destined for a landslide victory after the disqualification of two major opposition parties. Samia became president following the death in office of John Magufuli in 2021.

Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema) was disqualified for refusing to sign the election code of conduct. The party’s chair, Tundu Lissu, faces treason charges for calling for electoral reforms. The presidential candidate of the second-largest opposition party, ACT Wazalendo, has also been disqualified following a petition filed by the country’s registrar of political parties.

This makes the election significantly different to the last poll, held in 2020. That year, opposition parties participated, despite electoral flaws. This time, the ruling party goes to the polls virtually unchallenged. It will be looking for a seventh consecutive election victory.

The campaign is now dominated by CCM at all levels. There are indications that voter turnout will be low, with little public enthusiasm, especially knowing that a CCM victory is certain. Since 2010 the voter turnout has been shrinking. The elections in 2010 and 2020 experienced notably low voter turnout, with rates of 42.7% and 50.7%, respectively.

Tanzania continues to experience a decline in democracy, accompanied by heightened political repression and restrictions on political rights and civil liberties. The country’s status in the Freedom House democracy index dropped from the Partly Free category in 2020 to the Not Free category going into 2025.

Polling
Tanzanian general elections include three main categories: presidential, parliamentary, and councillor seats. They take place across the mainland and Zanzibar, Tanzania’s semi-autonomous state.

The 2025 elections feature 272 constituencies, 222 of which are mainland and 50 of which are in Zanzibar. Eight new constituencies were created in the mainland earlier this year.

The Independent Electoral Commission announced that a total of 37.7 million people had registered as voters in the 2025 elections, compared to 29.8 million at the last election: a 26.55% increase. According to the commission this reflects a rise in population but critics allege a scheme to manipulate the vote during the elections.

The electoral commission has cleared 16 presidential candidates. Samia, a native of Zanzibar, is running for her first full term. Her running mate, Emmanuel Nchimbi, has deep roots within CCM.

Chadema has called for electoral reforms, a stance which has brought charges of treason and incitement against Lissu.

ACT-Wazalendo’s candidate Luhaga Mpina was barred from running after the attorney general said his party had not followed nomination procedures.

With Chadema and ACT-Wazalendo out of the presidential race in mainland Tanzania, Chama Cha Ukombozi wa Umma (Chaumma), a fringe party that has benefited from the defections of some Chadema members, has emerged as the only challenger.

Its presidential candidate and running mate are Salum Mwalimu and Devotha Minja, who defected from Chadema earlier this year.

Chaumma’s apparent campaign resources have led some to conclude that it is surreptitiously backed by the ruling party. Chaumma and the 15 other fringe parties run the risk of legitimising an already flawed electoral process.

In Zanzibar, incumbent Hussein Mwinyi of CCM is seeking another term. He faces competition from Othman Masoud of ACT-Wazalendo. This will be the first general election in Zanzibar without opposition icon Seif Shariff Hamad, who died in 2021. He was a perennial presidential candidate in Zanzibar, always claiming that he had won but never becoming president.

In 2010 a government of national unity was formed in which he became the first vice president in a gesture aimed at reconciliation.

Campaign issues
The CCM is promising to deliver a strengthened economy, infrastructure development and improved healthcare. It has also pledged a new constitution. This last promise is part of the rhetoric previously peddled during political campaigns.

When Samia took office in 2021, she initiated reforms that promised improvements in governance. These are long forgotten.

Chadema’s “No Reforms, No Elections” position continues to shape public discourse. The call has focused minds on the governance and human rights issues facing Tanzania. These include attacks on media freedom, the targeting of government critics, and gross violations of human rights and abductions.

It has had an effect too on international opinion of Tanzania. Several international organisations including the African Commission on Human Rights and the European Parliament have voiced their concern about the deteriorating human rights situation in Tanzania.

ACT-Wazalendo has resolved to pursue reforms by participating in the election, with the rallying call of Linda Kura (protect the vote).

What’s different (and what’s not) this time
There is a new electoral framework for the 2025 election.

Three new electoral laws were passed. These are the National Electoral Commission Act (2023), the Presidential, Parliamentary, and Local Government Elections Bill (2023), and the Political Parties Affairs Laws (Amendment) Bill (2023). These changes led to the establishment of a new electoral body, the Independent National Electoral Commission, with the promise of reforming the electoral system.

A multi-stakeholder engagement recommended changes to enhance the electoral body’s independence. On this basis, a government task force recommended the creation of an “independent” committee, chaired by the chief justice, to vet applications of electoral commissioners.

Despite these changes, the executive branch still maintains significant influence over the electoral structure and decision making. The president still has the powers to appoint the chair, vice chair and commissioners of the electoral body.

With the opposition pushed aside and a controlled electoral process under way, CCM’s victory is all but certain. The key question now is the future of Tanzania’s democracy.

Author
Nicodemus Minde
Researcher, United States International University

Disclosure statement
Nicodemus Minde is affiliated with the Institute for Security Studies.

12/09/2025

The West African ebony tree (Diospyros crassiflora) can grow up to 25 metres tall. It is a culturally iconic and economically valuable tree prized for its deep black heartwood. Ebony has been used for centuries to make carvings, piano keys and guitars due to its special harmonics.

Our research found that no other animals in the Congo Basin are able to disperse the ebony tree’s seeds in the same way. This has left a functional gap in the forest – one that current conservation strategies too often overlook. Forest elephants have been poached out of two-thirds of the ebony trees’ natural habitat so most of the Congo Basin’s adult ebony trees are in elephant-free areas. This means they won’t be able to get any help from elephants in dispersing or concealing their seeds within dung.

Ebony and ivory: why elephants and forests rise and fall together in the Congo Basin.

The forest elephants of the Congo Basin are critically endangered and face extinction.

They live in Africa’s largest forest, extending over the continent’s west and central regions. Large populations are found in Gabon and the Republic of Congo and smaller groups in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, Ghana, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

But ivory poaching means their numbers have plummeted by 86% over the past three decades.

The sharp reduction of their population has a knock-on effect on the Congo Basin forest itself. This is because African forest elephants are the rainforest’s gardeners. They disperse more plant species than any other animal, regenerating and reshaping plant communities.

I’m a conservation scientist and part of a research team of international and Cameroonian scientists who set out to examine how forest elephants interact with West African ebony trees.

We wanted to know if the decline of elephants had negative, cascading effects on other Congo Basin forest species. We focused on ebony because it was known to be a food for elephants and its wood is prized for numerous uses.

The research team set up tree plots and experiments in forests with and without elephants (often lost due to hunting). We used hidden cameras to record which animals ate ebony fruit and how ebony seeds enclosed in dung grew into seedlings. Our lead researcher, Vincent Deblauwe, spent years in the field conducting these experiments and even built a custom camera trap to observe ebony pollinators for the first time in the canopy.

We also collected ebony seeds from within elephant dung, manually planted them, and carefully monitored germination rates and seedling survival.

Additionally, the project developed cloning propagation methods to support future replanting of ebony trees and ebony plantations.

Our research found that forest elephants, a different and smaller species than savannah elephants, are tightly linked to ebony’s life cycle.

The impact of elephants

These little four-tonne elephants support ebony reproduction in at least two ways.

Distance matters: Elephants move the ebony seeds quite far away from the parent tree. This reduces the risk of ebony trees growing close together and inbreeding. Inbreeding weakens the genetics and lowers their chances of being resilient and adaptable to future environmental change.

Dung as armour: Elephants consume ebony fruits whole and the pulp is digested from around the seeds before they p**p them out intact. We found digestion did not help the ebony seeds germinate. However, being encased in dung protected the seeds from rodents that eat and kill the seeds. This greatly improved the seeds’ chances of survival and germinating.

Our research found that there are nearly 70% fewer small (younger) ebony trees in the areas where elephants have disappeared. Most adult ebony trees alive today were dispersed by elephants decades ago because ebony is a slow growing wood that can take 50 years to begin reproducing, and 60 to 200 years to fully grow.

Our conclusion is that it is not certain that ebony trees in the Congo Basin will be able to survive naturally without the help of elephants.

Both elephants and rare ebony lie at the heart of the national heritage of Cameroon. By safeguarding elephants, Cameroon can protect the long-term viability of sustainably managed ebony and other valuable timbers.

A wake-up call for Central African forests

It’s not only the future of ebony that’s at stake. Other large-seeded trees may also rely on elephants to move their seeds. Elephant declines could be quietly reshaping forests in ways scientists are only beginning to uncover.

The takeaway is clear: plant-animal interactions are not a luxury add-on to conservation plans; they’re foundational to keeping forests functioning.

What needs to happen next

There are already many efforts to protect elephants and the processes they drive. Sadly, these seem insufficient to date.

The most urgent conservation action is halting the killing of elephants for ivory. Reducing illegal logging of ebony trees is also important. Both of these can be accomplished by better education with local residents about the ecological and economic importance of elephants and ebony, and improved enforcement of existing poaching and logging regulations.

Another important step is monitoring less charismatic tree species that also depend on elephants. Similar plant-animal relationships and the species and services they provide might be at risk.

Our project increases international research partnerships with Cameroon’s domestic experts and attracted expertise and funding for local institutions. For example, this research project provided education and capacity-building for Cameroonian researchers and practitioners, growing national expertise in biodiversity management.

Finally, African forest elephants don’t just live in the Congo Basin’s rainforests – they shape them. Increased poaching of elephants for ivory not only threatens the ebony tree – forest elephant declines can ripple through forest structure, biodiversity, and carbon storage.

This work was part of the Congo Basin Institute at UCLA and was largely funded by Taylor Guitars, which uses ebony for their instruments. They have invested nearly a decade in ebony research and conservation.

Author
Matthew Scott Luskin
Researcher and Lecturer in Conservation Science, The University of Queensland

Disclosure statement
Matthew Scott Luskin receives funding from NASA, ARC, and the National Geographic Society.

11/09/2025

Ethiopia’s mega dam has taken 14 years to build: what it means for the Nile’s 11 river states and why it’s so controversial.

In April 2011, Ethiopia began construction of Africa’s largest hydroelectric dam, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), on the Blue Nile river. The dam is expected to generate more than 6,000 megawatts of electricity, effectively transforming Ethiopia into the continent’s largest power exporter.

The dam affects 11 countries, two downstream and nine upstream.

Addis Ababa completed construction of the US$4 billion-plus project in July 2025, mainly with funds sourced from Ethiopians at home and in the diaspora, with an official launch on 9 September 2025. John Mukum Mbaku, who has researched the governance of the Nile’s waters, explains the dam’s potential for Ethiopia – and the controversies that have dogged it.

What are the simmering tensions around the official launch of the dam?
The dispute over the allocation and use of the Nile waters has been going on for many years. This has been exacerbated by climate change, and increased demand for food and water from growing populations.

The 11 countries that share the waters of the Nile have competing development priorities too. These states include Ethiopia, Egypt, Sudan, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya.

Egypt and Sudan lie downstream. They receive the river’s waters only after it has passed through the nine upstream states.

Initially, the downstream states, particularly Egypt, opposed the construction of the dam, arguing that it was a threat to their water rights.

However, Ethiopia powered ahead with construction. Egypt and Sudan then shifted negotiations to securing an agreement for filling and operating the dam.

The two downstream states had suggested that filling the dam should take about 12 to 21 years in order to protect their water supply. For domestic and political reasons, Addis Ababa prefered a shorter filling period. In addition, Egypt and Sudan argued that filling the reservoir without a legally binding agreement would disregard their interests and rights.

But with the dam now fully filled and due to be officially inaugurated on 9 September 2025, the issue of a binding agreement for filling the dam’s reservoir is moot.

Egypt and Sudan’s political and diplomatic efforts highlight what they say is the illegality of unilaterally operating the dam without a binding agreement. Despite the intervention of the African Union and the US government, as well as appeals by Egypt to the UN Security Council, the three countries haven’t been able to secure a deal.

Part of the reason is that Egypt has insisted that any negotiations on water allocation begin with the rights granted to it under its 1959 Nile Waters Treaty with Sudan.

Under this agreement, Egypt was granted 66% of the Nile’s estimated average annual water flow of 84 billion cubic metres. Sudan got 22%. The treaty ignores upstream countries’ legal claims to Nile waters, since 10 billion cubic metres were reserved for seepage and evaporation. Ethiopia’s highlands, for instance, supply more than 86% of the water that flows into the Nile River.

Egypt continues to argue that Ethiopia’s dam is a threat to its water security and that, if necessary, it will take measures to protect what it refers to as its “historical rights” to Nile waters.

Egypt relies on the Nile for more than 90% of its fresh water supplies. The country’s water needs have risen as its population has grown and its economy has expanded significantly.

However, Egypt and Sudan’s insistence on keeping their historical water shares cannot be considered equitable and reasonable. Additionally, Cairo doesn’t appear to be prioritising a water-use approach that acknowledges the legal claims of upstream states to the Nile’s waters.

Instead of improving and updating its water infrastructure, minimising wasteful irrigation practices and generally improving water use, Egypt has focused on grandiose mega projects that are putting significant stress on the region’s scarce water resources.

Sudan, which has been battling a devastating civil war since 2023, has raised concerns about Ethiopia’s dam affecting the operations of its own dams. This would make it more difficult to manage Khartoum’s development plans.

What makes agreement on the Nile so elusive?
The legal framework regulating the allocation of the Nile’s waters has been dominated by colonial-era agreements. These have been embraced by the two downstream states, Sudan and Egypt, but contested by the nine upstream ones.

Two of the most important of these agreements are the 1929 Anglo-Egyptian Treaty and the 1959 Egypt-Sudan treaty.

The 1959 treaty augmented the water allocations granted to Egypt and Sudan by the 1929 Anglo-Egyptian Treaty. These treaties also granted Egypt veto power over any construction projects on the Nile or its tributaries.

The terms of these treaties, however, are only possible if the nine upstream riparian states don’t access or utilise any water from the Nile and its tributaries.

Most importantly, they make the water rights of the other Nile countries dependent on Egypt and Sudan’s goodwill.

Ethiopia and other upstream states have long argued that they were not parties to the colonial-era treaties and are, therefore, not bound by them.

What international principles guide water use across borders?
The pillars of international transboundary water law are:

(i) equitable and reasonable use

(ii) the obligation not to cause significant harm

(iii) the duty to cooperate.

International legal scholars have noted that the 1959 Nile Treaty stands in sharp contrast to these principles. It disregards the sovereign rights of other riparian countries to their fair share of the Nile, and interferes with their development.

What does the dam promise for Ethiopians?
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is a symbol of national unity and pride. It is significant that construction was undertaken without reliance on financing from external actors, such as international financial institutions or major industrial countries.

The dam’s electricity output could potentially transform Ethiopia’s development.

First, the electricity would provide a reliable source of energy for rural industrialisation, reducing deforestation by eliminating the need for households to cut down trees for firewood.

Second, it would reduce the pollution associated with burning wood, dung and other forms of biomass for cooking and other activities.

Third, it would improve access to education, effectively providing light that enhances the ability of pupils to complete homework assignments and study at night. During hot seasons, the electricity generated could be used to cool classrooms, improving learning outcomes.

Finally, higher electricity output would boost internet connectivity in rural areas in Ethiopia, effectively boosting access to the outside world.

The dam could also help with flood control in Sudan and drought protection in Egypt – but only if the three countries work together.

Author
John Mukum Mbaku
Professor, Weber State University

Disclosure statement
John Mukum Mbaku does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

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