While Egypt submitted a proposal to formalize filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance dam reservoir over 5 years, Foreign Ministry sources detail attempts at a longer bid for control over the process Amid President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s calls for unity among Nile Basin countries at the presidential summit held in Uganda, Egypt attempted to shore up its ability to control the technical process at the heart of the Grand Renaissance Ethiopian Dam — a pressing concern for the upstream country’s immediate and future ability to lay claim to water sovereignty in the region.
A government source says that, in the first instance, Cairo submitted a draft of a general statement to the wider summit — which was not officially issued — and which would have formalized Ethiopia’s earlier proffered commitment to fill the dam’s reservoir over a period of five years.
It was a proposal that Cairo had initially judged to be sensible, before the majority of concerned parties agreed that Cairo should not go forward with an agreement that would have stemmed any remaining legal right to contest Ethiopia’s lack of commitment to the cooperative framework on the technical procedures of the construction of the dam and the test filling of its reservoir.
This decision has not gone unaddressed by the Egyptian government.
According to a Foreign Ministry authority working on the Renaissance Dam file who spoke to Mada Masr on condition of anonymity, Foreign Minister Sameh Shokry is also aiming to prompt a realignment in the Nile Basin, by affecting change in the position of a sufficient number of member states in the Nile Basin Initiative to re-launch the initiative on a new basis that would see members agree on two issues: First, that none of the member states can start a project on the banks or the pathway of the river without the “consensus” of member states; and second, that any projects launched by a member state without prior warning will be suspended.
The points which Cairo believes it can garner support from its Nile Basin neighbors remain general, and include seeking to maximize the benefit of Nile resources through joint projects, and talk of “the right of all people on the banks of the Nile to life, development and mutual benefit.” The proposal was met with “strong support” by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, according to the Foreign Ministry source familiar with the Renaissance Dam file, and the result of Shoukry’s communication with the Nile Basin countries.
Egypt announced its decision to freeze its membership in the Nile Basin Initiative in 2010 after five upstream member states signed a Cooperative Framework Agreement that would reallocate Nile water quotas without Egypt’s involvement.
The parties to the agreement asserted that the framework by which Egypt is allocated 56 billion cubic meters of water per year was signed in the 1950s, before most of the concerned states gained their independence.
Misaligned friends to the south Egypt has not gotten support from its southern neighbor in its political play in the dam struggle, according to a Foreign Ministry source who participated in a number of meetings with Sudan’s Foreign Minister, Ahmed Ghandour, referring to what he describes as “the unfortunate stance of Sudan.” Another diplomatic source that took part in the Khartoum meeting of irrigation ministers of the Nile Basin states in March speaks of “a disturbing situation” in which the Sudanese irrigation minister attacked his Egyptian counterpart and accused Cairo of ignoring delays in water projects in other Nile Basin states or their right to development.
The source adds that Cairo has not succeeded in obtaining a clear message regarding Sudan’s position on these potential projects during Shoukry’s meeting with his Sudanese counterpart, nor was Cairo able to ascertain Sudan’s position on the NBI, despite Shoukry subtle disapproval of Sudan’s position on the issue.

Wells of Life Partners with Mediaplanet to Fight Hunger.
Wells of Life is joining forces with Mediaplanet for their Tackling Hunger campaign to help raise awareness for those suffering from hunger and a lack of access to clean water.
Every 21 seconds a child dies from contaminated water.
About 40% of the world’s population lives in areas of water scarcity and there is a direct connection between lack of clean water and hunger.
Each person needs about 2.5 liters of water per day and, to put this in perspective, in order to produce enough food for one person for one day you would need 2,000 to 5,000 liters of water.
Founder Nick Jordan wants Wells of Life to unite all people across different religious, economic, and social backgrounds for the cause of providing people with the basic necessity of clean water.
"I saw the effects as I travelled across Uganda… most visibly in the daily suffering of women," says Jordan.
A Wells of Life well delivers clean water to a community for 25 years and each well that they build provides a new and better life for countless people across these areas.
About Mediaplanet: Mediaplanet specializes in the creation of content marketing campaigns released through multimedia platforms.
We continue to explore and expand our network of partners and clients through the shared interest of providing our readers the best experience possible.

Only a limited number of vehicles will now be allowed to enter Miankaleh Wildlife Sanctuary, according to a statement on the website of the Department of Environment’s office in Mazandaran Province.
The scheme will be implemented by law-enforcement officials, border guards and local environmentalists.
The measure is aimed at stemming the flow of tourists to the popular ecotourism site, whose fragile ecosystem is threatened by a variety of factors, from climate change and declining precipitation to bushfires and littering.
Tourism and environment officials have been working on a plan to turn Miankaleh Wetland into a hub of bird-watching, which requires severe protective measures to ensure the safety of both environment and species.
One of the 613 international biosphere reserves, the wetland in the wildlife sanctuary has been battling desiccation for years due to the Caspian Sea recession, climate change and Iran’s protracted battle with water scarcity.
Environment officials say it will be completely restored by 2021 when it achieves ecological balance.
It is spread over 68,800 hectares.
The peninsula was registered in 1969 as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.
In 1979, it was declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO.
The biosphere reserve’s ecological importance is highlighted by the fact that it hosts 250,000 migratory birds, including pelican, flamingo, graylag and white-fronted geese, swan, red-breasted merganser and the white-headed duck, in winters.

“Hunger will only be defeated if countries translate their pledges into action, especially at national and local levels,” FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said at the opening of the agency’s biennial conference in Rome.
Concerted effort is required in countries affected by conflict and climate change – which collectively house nearly 60 per cent of the world’s population suffering from hunger – he underscored.
It has also signalled the high risk of famine in north-east Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen with 20 million people severely affected.
These extreme conditions not only disrupt the lives of those affected, they also force many to migrate in search of better lives, compounding the distress.
The most vulnerable – especially women – are often the worst impacted.
In order to alleviate the suffering of millions, the UN agency will, over the next two years, be focusing its efforts on the promotion of sustainable agriculture, climate change mitigation and adaptation, poverty reduction, water scarcity, migration as well as supporting conflict-affected rural livelihoods.
Transforming agriculture sector critical for 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development – UNDP chief Also today, delivering the McDougall Memorial Lecture, Achim Steiner, the Administrator of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), highlighted that transforming agriculture was crucial to transform the world, as envisioned in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
This, he said, is in many ways a “profound political reforms agenda.” “Doing so cannot be seen as a technical challenge to be addressed within the agricultural sector, but rather as a complex undertaking that calls for integrated approaches considering economic, environmental, and social aspects,” said Mr. Steiner.
“[This] needs to recognize farmers as agents of change, operating within a larger ‘agriculture economy,’ that with the right incentives and enablers, can leverage agriculture to enhance livelihoods and sustainability.” The lecture honours Frank Lidgett McDougall, an Australian economist, who played a key role in the creation of FAO.
It reviews and decides on FAO’s programme of work and budget, and discusses priority areas related to food and agriculture across the globe.

Waive all farm loans, govt.
Activists of the Karnataka Rajya Raita Sangha (KRRS) staged a protest in front of the office of Deputy Commissioner here on Monday urging the government to waive farm loans availed of by farmers from commercial and cooperative banks.
Addressing a gathering on the occasion, Ravikiran Punacha, president, Dakshina Kannada unit of the KRRS, said that the State government has now waived farm loans up to ₹ 50,000 taken from cooperative banks.
It indicated the crisis faced by farmers.
Agriculturists in other taluks too faced water scarcity, though the government formally did not declare them drought-hit.
Mr. Punacha said that the government should fix scientific rates for arecanut, coconut, cocoa, pepper and rubber.
He said that the government should purchase cocoa at ₹ 6,000 per quintal.
It should establish a centre for purchasing the produce at the same rate.
The grower should get ₹ 17,500 per quintal of rubber.
Mr. Punacha said that the government should purchase copra at ₹ 25,000 per quintal.

Sirsa (Haryana), July 3: The National Highway 9 (NH-10 by old numbering), which connects Delhi to the border town of Fazilka in Punjab, has a lesser-known distinction.
The 403-kilometre-long carriageway, which cuts through four major districts of Haryana — namely, Rohtak, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa — bifurcates the region broadly into two in terms of agricultural practices.
Record cotton sowing The region, known as the cotton belt of Haryana, has assumed significance this year, as there has been a record sowing of cotton, on 6.3 lakh hectares, which is over a quarter more than the 5 lakh ha in the corresponding period last year.
“Farmers in the region were left with limited choice as many areas suffer from water scarcity and hence were not suitable for paddy,” says Chandrabhan, who grows cotton in Buthan Kalan village of Fatehabad district.
While prices of seeds and inputs have gone up significantly, the price that a farmer gets has either stayed at what it was some 15 years ago or come down.
For instance, he says, a quintal of cotton was priced around ₹5,500 in 2001, the best price available to a farmer last year was ₹5,000 per quintal.
High costs Even at a price of ₹ 5,000 per quintal, a tenant farmer sustains losses, he argues.
The best yield of 8 quintal per acre gets him only ₹40,000.
“I wanted to go for it as Bt cotton growing was affecting the productivity of the wheat crop I grow following the cotton harvest,” he says.
The country-wide kharif crop sowing data released by the Agriculture Ministry on June 30 actually shows that of a total area of 6.3 lakh ha under cotton cultivation, less than 1 per cent is growing non-Bt cotton.

This well-planned city had two fortifications, one around the principal Adil Shahi administrative and residential buildings, and a larger one around the rest of the city.
Both were roughly circular and had moats and several gateways.
To further strengthen the defence of the city walls, the Adil Shahis built many bastions and about 96 gigantic cannons were placed on them.
A spiral stairway leads to the top which houses two long cannons.
Only its structural skeleton remains today.
A short walk from the Gagan Mahal is the Sath Manzil (Seven Pavillions) or Haft Manzil built by Ibrahim II as a pleasure pavilion.
Only a few storeys survive now and there is no way to go inside.
Reservoirs & stepwells Water was and is a precious resource for Vijayapura and the Adil Shahis built a complex hydraulic system to bring water from distant sources into the city and supplemented this with reservoirs and stepwells.
The Taj Baoli is the biggest stepwell in Vijayapura and was built by Malik Sandal, a Persian architect, in honour of Taj Sultana, the wife of Ibrahim Adil Shah II.
The stepwell was built by Ali Adil Shah I in honour of his wife Chand Bibi and it served as the model for Taj Baoli.

Saving finger millet varieties.
He has been successfully growing finger millet varieties in his farm.
Naturally, we see a rich diversity of finger millet varieties in this region.
Sahaja Samrudha, a farmers organisation that has been working towards preserving and propagating heritage seeds, put in efforts to collect such heritage varieties from different finger millet growing regions of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
He waters the plants only four times — soon after transplantation, after one month, while manuring and during flowering.
As a result, the crop has yielded well.
One can get a yield of up to 20 quintals with proper management,” says Somashekhara.
His wife Mani is happy that they could source and conserve a local variety, ayyana ragi, that was popular in the olden days.
Somashekhara’s experiment has proved that finger millet can be grown in this region in summer months too.“If farmers come forward to conserve at least one variety, that will help save and propagate the varietal diversity,” says seed conserver Boregowda.
The farmers in Mandya had forgotten finger millet as irrigation canals carry water to the fields perennially, prompting them to grow two crops of paddy.

How policymakers can support a new crop of young, qualified women.
In the years I have lived and worked in the Middle East and North Africa I have often been struck by the remarkable and highly educated women leading change in their fields.
Despite the fact that girls now perform better than boys in school-level education in most Arab countries, and account for the majority of university students in places like Algeria, Palestine and Saudi Arabia, there remain too few women in leadership positions across the board.
That is why I have been so struck by a fellowship programme recently launched in the UAE that offers insights into how policymakers can best support the new crop of young, qualified women to become the change-makers of tomorrow, as my grandmother was.
The programme is focused on agricultural science.
Science is the key to tackle this challenge, but our region is still not harnessing all its great minds.
Unless those devising the solutions can take gender into account, we will be failing to support the people whose food production we need to improve.
That’s why I am so encouraged to see the emergence of Tamkeen, a fellowship programme that seeks to attract, develop and empower the next generation of women agricultural scientists in the Arab world.
It takes its lead from a successful programme that is already operating in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Meeting these fellows makes you optimistic that people like this will provide their own solutions to the region’s challenges .

Summary: They said the company should immediately vacate their village.Meanwhile, ONGC workers replaced a pipeline where oil leakage was identified.
Elders led the procession.Shops and commercial establishments remained closed for the third consecutive day to show their solidarity to the protesting farming community.
A large number of police personnel were deployed when the pipeline replacement work was carried out.
They claimed that earlier they had dug only 20 to 25 feet for pumping water.
They demanded the immediate withdrawal of entire properties owned by ONGC.
THANJAVUR: A large number of school students staged a protest against ONGC at Kathiramangalam in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu on Monday, alleging that the company has never paid attention to their repeated appeals to close down the oil and gas wells around the village.The villagers have been protesting against ONGC’s oil and gas extraction work for the last few weeks, alleging that the process had led to water scarcity in their area.
They claimed that earlier they had dug only 20 to 25 feet for pumping water.
However, they have to dig more than 150 feet now.
Police lathicharged the villagers.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/kathiramangalam-oil-leak-children-take-out-rally-against-ongc-/articleshow/59427328.cms Subscribe to Chennai News