A 1929 treaty brokered by former colonial power, Britain, granted Egypt a veto over projects that may alter the flow of the Nile. Another 1959 accord between Egypt and Sudan claimed 90 percent of the Nile’s flow for the two countries.
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After a decade of talks, five Nile nations Ethiopia, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya in May 2010 signed a deal that allowed upstream countries to implement irrigation and hydropower projects without first seeking Egypt's approval. A sixth signatory was needed for the CFA to come into force and once it has been ratified by the six national legislatures, a Nile Basin Commission will be created.

After securing the sixth vital country endorsement, the Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA) will establish a commission to oversee dam building and irrigation development, effectively stripping Egypt of the veto. “We are happy to join our colleagues in East Africa in signing this agreement,” Burundian Water and Environment Minister Jean-Marie Nibirantije says.

The Democratic Republic of Congo, which led a campaign for countries to sign the agreement in 2009, plans to sign the accord at an unspecified future date, says Environment Minister Jose Endundo. The remaining upstream nation, Eritrea, wasn’t involved in talks leading to the Accord. The CFA states that the commission will resolve the issue of water security in its first six months of operations. “The move by the government of Burundi has been hailed by Nile Technical Advisory Committee says a member Shillingi Mugishaof Uganda.

Egypt and Sudan have argued their water supply would be dangerously reduced if upstream countries are able to divert the river flow without multilateral consultation. Egypt warned in April 2010 that it would withdraw from the Nile Basin Initiative Convention on Cooperation in the Nile Basin known as NBI, if the seven upstream states signed the accord.

Egypt built two very impotent hydroelectric power plants - Aswan Dam (1902) and Aswan High Dam (1967) allowing it better control with the flow all through the year. In January 2011, Egypt and Sudan asked Nile Basin countries to meet to discuss the legal implications of not all riparian states signing the agreement.

While the upstream nations refused to reopen negotiations, as Egypt requested, the NBI had scheduled an extraordinary meeting in January to help ease Egypt's concerns about the pact. According to Ethiopian Water and Energy Minister Alemayehu Tegenu, the meeting was postponed because of the political problem in Egypt.

Some projects being considered on the Nile include a 60 to 80-megawatt hydropower plant at Rusumo Falls to serve Rwanda, Tanzania and Burundi, according to NBI. Building the power-generation plant and cross-border transmission lines over the next four years may cost $350 million. “It’s big news for us. We think this is in the interests of Burundi and all riparian countries. We believe it’s even in the interests of Egypt, as this is the only way we can be in a win-win situation, ‘says Khairy Wael, NBI Executive Director.

The Nile River’s average discharge is about 300 million cubic meters per day and Ethiopia is the source of about 85 percent of the water that flows to Sudan and Egypt. But the role played by the Nile in human life and history is much more important. This river is the maker of the oldest civilization recorded. About 5,000 years ago, the Egyptian state emerged on its banks. It is best known as the longest river on the planet at 6,695 km long.