Case Study - Water conflicts - The Gilgel Gibe III Dam

Question 1

How high is the dam?

Answer 1

244 meters high

Question 2

How wide is the dam?

Answer 2

610 metres wide

Question 3

How much water can the dam hold?

Answer 3

The dam can hold 14.7 billion cubic metres of water.

Question 4

How much electricity does the dam generate annually?

Answer 4

The dam generates 6,500 gwh of electricity per year.

Question 5

What was the cost of construction of the dam?

Answer 5

1.83 billion dollars

Question 6

When did the construction of the dam begin?

Answer 6

2015

Question 7

How many people will be negatively impacted by the dam as they rely on the Omo River downstream?

Answer 7

200,000

Question 8

Give three arguments in favour of the dam?

Answer 8

• Only one third of Ethiopia’s population has access to electricity
• The dam will lead to a reduction in the volume of power cuts
• Ethiopia could become an exporter of electricity

Question 9

Give three arguments against the construction of the dam?

Answer 9

• Ethiopia is already in debt
• The government ignored regulation to speed up the start of construction
• Due to environmental transparency rules being broken, the IMF and World Bank have refused to fund the project and the government is $440 million short

Question 10

Why did UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee call for the construction of the dam to be halted in 2011?

Answer 10

They called for construction to be halted due to the potential impact on Lake Turkana, which is a World Heritage site on the Kenyan-Ethiopian border.

Question 11

State some of the tribes who could be negatively impacted?

Answer 11

• Mursi
• Nyangatan