It said that the studies of these consultation offices will be respected, but that they are not obligatory. He further expressed his concerns over GERD due to the lack of guarantees provided by Ethiopia to Egypt and Sudan. He also said that Ethiopia brought up the consultation offices issue to win time. Sudan, Egypt, and Ethiopia signed a declaration of principles in March 2015, in which they agreed on the construction of the GERD. The government is claiming that the consultation offices will guarantee that the water share of each country will not be affected.

Source: Daily News Egypt August 31, 2016 13:18 UTC