Thirsty Egypt Clings Tight To The Nile

In recent years, some Egyptian farmers have seen their water supply dwindle dramatically. In Al Fayoum, farmers depend on water from the Nile River and nearby aqueducts to reach them via canals. But they say people closer to the river are taking too much. Photo retrieved from: www.npr.org

“The Nile follows an unusual course, flowing northward from the interior of Africa to the Mediterranean Sea.  For as long as anyone can remember, Egypt has dominated the basin from its position at the end of the line.

But being at the end of any line has its worries. There’s always a chance that the supply will run out before it gets to you. No nation is more keenly aware of that risk than Egypt.

Ayman Habou Hadid, who runs a research center at Egypt’s Agriculture Ministry, says desert people have only one fixation: “Water availability. That’s it.”

“But it is a challenge to improve the awareness of our people that we have to use the water at the maximum efficiency,” he says. “This is a major concern. The best utilization of water.”

Masoud Shomon, a folklorist in Cairo, says it takes an Egyptian to understand the Nile.

“I consider the Nile like a person,” Shomon says. “In the source countries, the Nile remains like a child. And it is here where this child grows older and is able to make a civilization. Why have the Egyptians built such a great civilization along the banks of the Nile? It is because Egyptians understand the Nile.”

But there are just as many non-Egyptians in the river basin who say they, too, understand the Nile just fine. They chafe at what they perceive as arrogance on the part of Egypt.”

Read more: NPR