Joint Crisis Committee: DeNILE is a River in Egypt: The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, 2011
In 2011, plans for the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), at the time known as “Project X,” were made public, and the next day, a contract was awarded to an Italian company for construction of the dam. After the contract was awarded, the project was known as the “Millenium Dam,” until April, when it was finally given the GERD name. Construction of the dam is intended to begin in 2011, and after the dam is completed, the resulting reservoir is to be filled with water from the Nile. There is a dispute over how this will affect the Nile’s water supply to other, downstream countries, most especially Egypt. On the Egyptian side, delegates will represent members of the cabinet of Essam Sharaf, the de facto head of state. Egypt strongly opposes the dam, and believes that the dam and subsequent reservoir would reduce the water available from the Nile; Egypt depends on the Nile for about 90% of its water. Due to a lack of rainfall, Egypt’s agriculture depends entirely on irrigation, so its water access is especially important. On the Ethiopian side, delegates will be the council of ministers of Meles Zenawi. Ethiopia is dealing with an acute energy shortage, and the primary purpose of the dam is electricity production. The dam is financially supported in part by China. The Council was formed in 2005 to tackle poverty in Ethiopia as well as government weakness, and the Council will also have to consider how to address domestic issues in Ethiopia, most especially a suffering economy.
grand crisis manager: yu fan mei
In this Joint Crisis Committee, delegates will represent the members of the Egyptian and Ethiopian Cabinets as they navigate the construction of the GERD from their distinct points of view.
DeNILE is a River in Egypt: The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, 2011 — Ethiopian Council of Ministers of Meles Zenawi
DeNILE is a River in Egypt: The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, 2011 — Egyptian Cabinet of Essam Sharif
ABOUT THE GRAND CRISIS MANAGER
Yu Fan Mei is a student in the Georgetown College class of 2027, studying Mathematics with minors in Computer Science and Biology. Growing up in the Massachusetts hometown of President John Adams, he grew a passion for many things, such as history and international affairs— but especially science and environmental policy. He travels regularly with the Georgetown MUN team, and is involved in the orchestra and (No) Pressure Creatives, a student-run Asian-American musical. In his free time, he likes to compose music, go on nighttime runs in the gorgeous (and unimaginably affluent) neighborhoods of D.C., or sit down in a cozy corner and pick up a good book. On top of his many interests, you can always make conversation with him about anything ethics or public health-related. He is an ardent believer in STEM as a force for good, and can’t wait to see how delegates embrace the power of mother nature!