The Middle Eastern parts of Africa are not only having unrest in society due to politics, but there is also outburst from the people on the water crisis. Egypt was given the rights to all of the Nile's water after a treaty was signed between the country and Britain that announced Egypt's independence. However, throughout the years, as more countries in the Nile River's location became independent, the river's water was split up, yet a large majority still remained in Egypt's rights. One key term to the new treaty was that any water projects upstream had to be approved by Egypt.
This is the problem facing the area today. Ethiopia has been building the Grand Renaissance Dam, which is said to be completed by 2017. As water in the region is not used resourcefully, the river has been dramatically losing water. For this reason, Egypt has not approved the new dam, but Ethiopia has begun construction anyways, and other upstream countries are on Ethiopia's side.
This is a large problem for Egypt, in which 97% of people in the country live along the Nile. Egypt's main sources of income are agriculture and tourism, both of which demand large amounts of water. With Egypt's political problems being as they are, the water crisis had been ignored, and now the region must face the consequences.
As the months go by we will see Egypt's reactions to the possibility of even more water loss caused by the dam. Will they act forcibly or try to compromise with the upstream countries?