Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has dismissed a claim by U.S. President Donald Trump that the United States financed Ethiopia’s flagship Nile mega-dam project, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).
The $4 billion GERD, built on a tributary of the River Nile, is expected to generate about 5,150 megawatts of electricity, making it Africa’s largest hydroelectric dam by power capacity.
However, the project remains a major source of regional tension, particularly with Egypt, which has described the dam as an “existential threat” due to its heavy reliance on the Nile for an estimated 97% of its water supply.
Trump, speaking last month on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, claimed the dam “was financed by the United States and basically blocks the Nile.”
But addressing lawmakers on Tuesday, Abiy firmly denied the assertion, insisting Ethiopia received no foreign financial support for the project.
“We did not receive a single birr in loans or financial aid from any foreign sources for the construction of the mega-dam,” Abiy said.
He added that the project was completed through contributions from Ethiopians at home and abroad.
“We achieved this through the strong commitment of Ethiopians living in the country and in the diaspora,” he stated.
Ethiopian authorities say construction began in 2011 and was funded through domestic taxes and loans. The firm behind the project has also maintained that the dam does not reduce Egypt’s share of Nile water.
Speaking during the dam’s inauguration in September, Pietro Salini, CEO of Webuild, the project’s main contractor, said the GERD does not consume water through irrigation.
“The dam releases water to produce energy. They are not irrigation schemes that consume water,” Salini said.
He also backed Ethiopia’s position that the project was fully financed internally, noting that international lenders declined involvement.
“Not one international lender was willing to put money in this project,” he said.
Trump, a long-time supporter of Egypt’s government, has pledged to push for renewed negotiations between Addis Ababa and Cairo. Ethiopian officials have yet to publicly respond to Egypt’s latest signal that it is ready to resume mediation talks.
