By VISION REPORTER

PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has held talks with an Egyptian delegation representing the new Egyptian government.

The delegation, led by Abdullah Latif Nassar, son of former Egyptian revolutionary and leader, the late Gamal Abdul Nasser, met with Museveni yesterday at State House, Entebbe.

Nasser led Egypt out of poverty into prosperity after fighting colonialism. He ruled Egypt from 1956 to 1970.

The 40-member delegation included leading academics, civil society, politicians, and three aspiring presidential candidates, according to State House.

This was the first time Egypt was sending a delegation to any African country since the Tahrir Square revolts of January 25 that forced out President Hosni Mubarak in February.

Mubarak transferred his powers to the military, which has committed itself to handing the reins to civilian rule after elections before the end the year.

Museveni and the delegates discussed the sharing of the Nile water, the life-line of Egypt and many other African countries.

While calling for a win-win situation for countries that use the Nile, President Museveni said Uganda would not involve herself in policies intended to destroy the water body.

There has been a dispute relating to the 1929 colonial agreement between the British and Egypt, and the 1959 agreement between Egypt and Sudan that granted only Egypt and Sudan an absolute right to use the Nile waters.

Protracted negotiations have been carried out and a new agreement that alters the Nile colonial agreements drawn.

Most of the countries have signed the new treaty except Sudan and Egypt.

The new treaty gives equal user rights for all countries.

However, Uganda and many other countries have not yet ratified.
Museveni said Uganda was willing to wait for Egypt to reorganise herself before she could ratify.

He said his vision of the Nile was that of a river basin that is industrialised and transformed from Burundi to Alexandria.

Stretching for 6,650km and serving 10 Riparian countries, River Nile supports the livelihoods of about 160 million people.

Museveni said the main threat to the Nile wasn’t construction of dams but deforestation caused by peasants looking for wood fuel and land for cultivation as forests play a major role in the production of rain.

The delegates said Egypt would in future be more pro-African.