Electrification: Conflict or Cooperation in East Africa? A Case Study of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD)

Abstract

The GERD promises to bring electricity to underdeveloped East Africa. Located in western Ethiopia, approximately 20km from the Sudanese border, the GERD disrupts the natural flow of the Blue Nile, the main tributary to the Nile. Regionally, this disruption will create consequences from its origin through ancient civilizations in rain-poor Sudan and Egypt where agricultural production is dependent upon continued irrigation from the Nile. Locally, the rising reservoir behind the GERD will displace 20,000 individuals. Given these disruptions, the GERD has the potential to cause international and/or local conflict, but this case study illustrates that the benefits of regional electrification can enable actors to avoid conflict.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 06, 2019
Accession Number
AD1177347

Entities

People

  • Ashley M. Noreuil

Organizations

  • Marine Corps University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Africa
  • Agreements
  • Case Studies
  • Climate Change
  • East Africa
  • Economic Development
  • Education
  • Energy Security
  • Environment
  • Environmental Protection
  • Foreign Relations
  • Geography
  • Governments
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • International Organizations
  • Natural Gas
  • Navies (Foreign)
  • Petroleum
  • Somalia
  • United Nations
  • United States

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy Engineering.
  • International Relations, focusing on Korea-Africa and North Korea-South Korea relations, and Nigeria-Latin American Relations.