Johannesburg — Africa's largest hydroelectric dam, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), on the Blue Nile is scheduled to open Tuesday to major fanfare in Ethiopia. The $5 billion dam project has been a uniting force for Ethiopians both at home and abroad, who have helped to fund the project.

Funding calls had gone out since the project was launched in 2011, with the government also issuing bonds to fund construction of the mile-long, 475-foot-high structure.

The celebrations in Ethiopia, however, will not extend further down the mighty river into neighboring Sudan or Egypt, both of which have warned that the dam could bring grave consequences.

After years of failed talks, there was still no agreement in place a day before the dam was due to commence operations on how the wa

See Full Page