Tanzania to host the Annual Nile Basin Council of Ministers (COM) meeting

Tanzania has offered to host the 2022 Annual Nile Basin Council of Ministers Meeting which will bring together Water Ministers from the ten Nile Basin countries: namely Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. The high-level meeting will be held on 19th August 2022 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

“The Government of Tanzania, through Hon. Jumaa H. Aweso, the Minister for Water, Tanzania has graciously agreed to host this year’s Council of Ministers meeting,” NBI Executive Director, Eng Sylvester Matemu has announced.

The Nile Basin Council of Ministers (COM), traditionally convened at the beginning of every fiscal year, is the top decision-making organ of the institution and it is responsible for setting the strategic direction over the use of the shared resources of the Nile River basin. This governance body receives updates on the progress of key regional investment projects under NBI and guides on implementation. The Council of Ministers (COM) approves new transboundary investment projects, national projects with transboundary significance and regional basin wide strategies on equitable utilization of and benefits from the common Nile Basin waters. The Council of Ministers also approves of the work plan and budget for the subsequent financial year.

“This year’s meeting will be held at the same event for all the three NBI centers, as a demonstration that the institution is living the “One NBI Philosophy,” Explained Eng Matemu, the Executive Director. Thus, the Council of Ministers (COM) meeting for the three NBI centers comprising of; the Eastern Nile Subsidiary Action Program (ENSAP/ENTRO) the Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program (NELSAP-CU) as well as for the Nile Secretariat (Nile-SEC) will all take place on the same day.

Elaborating further on the upcoming meetings, the NELSAP-CU Regional Coordinator Dr. Eng. Isaac Alukwe said, “Tanzania is a special country for NBI because it is where NBI was founded in February 1999 in the city of Dar es Salaam and is also where NELSAP-CU was formed, in December of the same year, at the town of Arusha.” He added that Tanzania is one of the three countries sharing NBI’s flagship investment project, the 80MW Regional Rusumo Falls Hydroelectric Project, which is close to completion.
Since leadership of NBI governing body (COM) is rotational every year, the Council of Minister’s meeting will also witness a change in the top leadership of each of the centers.

The Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) is the first and only all-inclusive platform for the Nile Basin States to engage on a data driven approach to common basin challenges with trust and confidence. This approach promotes sustainable joint investments in the shared Nile Basin water resources to maximize win-win benefits for the current and future generations of the basin.