Several women leaders have taken to addressing the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) dilemma by launching the ‘Women of the Nile Basin’ forum, the first women’s coalition in Africa aimed at strengthening relations between the countries of the Nile Basin and utilizing the power of soft forces. Forum founder Naglaa Abul-Magd explained that the coalition is working to to implement a plan for joint popular cooperation based on a framework of peace and mutual respect. The forum includes a large number of women from Egypt, Sudan, South Sudan, Chad, and Uganda so far, she added. While the idea was first presented years ago, Abul-Magd said that recent GERD developments have emphasized it further as a platform for peace. She added that soft powers can play a great role in improving relations between peoples.

Source: Egypt Independent April 11, 2021 09:00 UTC