Vol. 8, No.2: Anglo-Ethiopian Treaty on the Nile and the Tana Dam Concessions: A Script in Legal History of Ethiopia’s Diplomatic Confront (1900-1956)

Abstract

In hydro-political context, while Ethiopia had been able to propel its own canoe in the first half of the 20th century, a blend of factors worked in concert to deprive it of any meaningful prospect in the utilization of the Nile water resources within its jurisdiction. I argue that the Anglo- Ethiopian Treaty of 1902 on the Blue Nile and the stream of negotiations conducted in the immediate aftermath on the grant of Lake Tana Dam concessions have engendered deleterious impacts on the legal position and sovereign interests of Ethiopia. Ethiopia’s imperial vacillation was vexatious, and British hegemonic designs of the time leaned too heavily towards Sudan and Egypt. As a result, the post-1950 period witnessed a waning influence of Ethiopia’s hydro-legal posture and the molding of deeply engrained perceptions of proprietorship along the downstream Nile.