Challenges and opportunities in negotiating trans-boundary water management agreements in the post-colonial Africa: a case study of the Nile Basin

Abstract

This study examined the opportunities and challenges in negotiating trans-boundary water agreements in Africa since the end of the colonialism, with emphasis being on the Nile basin. It analysed the topic under the two themes, namely; global trans-boundary water agreements and opportunities and challenges in negotiating the Nile river treaty. The study relied on two main sources of information to collect data, namely the primary sources pursued through interviewed schedules and published secondary sources. The secondary sources were very important in enriching and putting into context the data obtained from the primary sources, including diplomatic missions in Nairobi, nongovernmental organisations, inter-governmental organisations such as the Nile Basin Initiative head office in Entebbe, Uganda, all which were useful in understanding the opportunities and challenges in negotiating trans-boundary water agreements in Africa. This study used the problem-solving approach as the theory within the systemic level of analysis. The approach was important because it calls upon the riparian countries to recognise the fact that water is not static but can become flexible and thereby end the perennial squabbles over water. The study found that there are opportunities that accrue from cooperation in negotiating trans-boundary water agreements. However, these opportunities face serious challenges that lead to inter-state confrontations over the utilisation of the Nile river resources.