The last meeting was held three years ago and tackled several fields, including education, health, agriculture and fisheries.The Ethiopian premier's three-day visit comes in the framework of the joint Egyptian-Ethiopian committee which was postponed several times since last December.Desalegn is expected to meet with President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and deliver a speech before the House of Representatives. The ministers will put the joint committee meeting's agenda and arrange cooperation procedures. Egypt’s average water per-capita is expected to drop from 663 cubic meters per year to 582 cubic meters by 2025, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS). However, Addis Ababa claimed that the dam is necessary for Ethiopia’s development and will not harm downstream countries.Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi stressed that Egypt neither interferes nor conspires against any other country. Sisi's statements came in a speech given during the inauguration of projects nationwide on Monday, amid tensions between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan.In a message directed to Sudan and Ethiopia, President Sisi stated that Egypt’s developed military ability does not contradict with such the policy of peace, but it comes under defending national security.

Source: Ethiopian News January 16, 2018 21:22 UTC