Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan agree to delay filling Nile dam until deal is reached

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan agree to delay filling Nile dam until deal is reached

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan agreed that Addis Ababa will delay the filling of a hydropower dam it is building on the Blue Nile until a final binding deal is reached, the Egyptian presidency said on Friday, signaling progress in talks over the disputed project.

Renewed negotiations over the $4.8 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) failed to produce an accord last week, and Ethiopia insisted it will begin filling the dam in July even without approval from the two downstream countries.

On Friday, the three countries agreed to form a committee of legal and technical experts to draft a final binding deal, and to "refrain from taking any unilateral measures, including the filling of the dam, before the agreement is reached,“ the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.

The announcement came after an emergency African Union online summit of leaders of the three countries chaired by South African president Cyril Ramaphosa.

Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdouk said in a statement that the three leaders have agreed to "postpone the filling of the reservoir until an agreement is signed“.

The technical committee will try to strike a deal within two weeks as suggested by Ethiopia, his office said.

The committee will