Ethiopian Minister of Energy and Water Resources Habtamu Itiwa indicated his government is under pressure not to use the country’s water resources and called on water experts to protect Ethiopia’s water sovereignty. At an international conference on water, food and energy security that kicked off yesterday in the capital city of Addis Ababa, he pointed out that “water resource development largely requires experts and thorough research,” stressing that “we must empower our professionals to influence politics in Ethiopia.

Iteva called on all Ethiopian water experts inside and outside the country to intensify efforts to protect the country’s water security, noting that “the government is focused on addressing the problem of water, energy and food shortages due to the growing burden of the population and increasing urbanization.” He stated that “this work requires a lot of expert input”, noting that “Ethiopia has recently faced the negative effects of climate change and conflict, which has led to internal displacement and migration.”