This archive report was first published on 13 May 2020.
Published on May 13, 2020, Sudan has rejected an Ethiopian proposal to sign a partial agreement for the first filling of the Renaissance Dam, throwing the row over the Nile river into further uncertainty.
Sudanese Prime Minister Abadalla Hamdok called for a tripartite agreement between Khartoum, Addis Ababa, and Cairo before the start of the first filling of the dam, expected in July.
Hamdok argued that the current conditions may not allow negotiations through regular diplomatic channels, but they can be resumed through video conferences and other technology to complete the negotiation process and agree on the remaining points.
According to Saleh Hamad, the leader of Sudan's negotiating team, the most important issues to be ironed out will include coordination mechanism on the filling of water, data exchange on levels of the river, dam safety, and environmental and social impacts.
Hamad revealed that Khartoum is making progress to resume the negotiation process by referring to the Washington track that dealt with about 90 per cent of the points of disagreement.
