Only cooperation between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia will allow a solution to the GERD problem, the president stated in a speech at the University of Belgrade, in Serbia, a country he visited as part of a European tour, his office reported.

Water scarcity and desertification are currently serious problems facing humanity due to their negative impact on the achievement of sustainable development goals, he stressed.

The president insisted on the need to respect the universal principles that govern the use of shared water bodies to meet the countries’ needs.

Cairo states that the project threatens its share of water from Nile River, on which human consumption, agriculture and industry in the country, with more than 103 million people, are almost entirely dependent.

Considered one of world’s most water-scarce countries, Egypt receives about 60 billion cubic meters a year, mainly from Nile River, but its needs are around 114 billion cubic meters.

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