The Executive Director of Nile Basin Initiative Dr Florence Adong has handed over 13 hydrological stations to Ministry of Water and Environment to facilitate in the monitoring of lake victoria water levels along the Nile region.
The Nile River is the longest river on earth and covers 10% of Africa’s population and communities have shared the Nile as source of livelihood for investment and social economic development.
The Hydro Meteorological Stations were constructed with support of the Nile Basin Initiative funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The objective of the regional hydrological monitoring system is to establish and strengthen regional hydrological monitoring activities and applications in the Nile Basin countries.
They are also to support collaborative generation of basin monitoring information products critical to sustainable water resources management.
Officiating at the hand over ceremony at Ministry of Water and Environment head quarters in Luzira Adong asked government officials to utilise the equipments sustainably.
“The hydrological stations will give real time and reliable data information on water flows, early warning in case of flooding and drought for planning purposes,” she stressed.
She asked Nile Basin member states to urgently address water scarcity and hash climate change effects in the region.
Adong said currently the region is experiencing increased high temperatures and water shortage despite increased population growth.
Permanent Secretary Ministry of Water and Environment Alfred Okot Okidi assured the funders of good collaborations in water management programmes.
Engineer Sowed Sewagudde Commissioner of International and Transboundary Water Affairs highlighting the benefits of Nile Basin Initiative cooperation at 25 years said over $6.5billion projects have been implemented.
According to him Uganda earns $1.5million monthly for power sales through interconnections.
Tom Kanyike Principal Hydrologist in the department of water resources said hydrological stations will be used to monitor water levels perfectly well.
“The hydrological stations will provide
real time river flow information critical for water levels, monitor
Albert Nile river flows before border crossing so that there is sustainable water management across the nile,” he said.
Kanyike said Uganda intends to train and build capacity of all staff on equipment usage for sustainability.
The Nile Basin Initiative works to achieve sustainable socio-economic development through the equitable utilization of, and benefit from, the common Nile Basin water resources.
According to NBI, its primary objectives are to develop the Nile Basin water resources in a sustainable and equitable way to ensure prosperity, security, and peace for all its peoples; to ensure efficient water management and optimal use of the resources; to ensure cooperation and joint action between the riparian.
The NBI began with a dialogue among the riparian states that resulted in a shared vision objective “to achieve sustainable socioeconomic development through the equitable utilization of, and benefit from, the common Nile Basin water resources.” It was formally launched in february 1999 by the water ministers of nine countries.
Today, 95 percent of Egyptians live within a few kilometers of the Nile. Canals bring water from the Nile to irrigate farms and support cities. The Nile supports agriculture and fishing. The Nile also has served as an important transportation route for thousands of years.
