CHAPTER 3

WATER RESOURCE AND IRRIGATION

DEVELOPMENT IN ETHIOPIA
 Water Resource Potential of Ethiopia
 Ethiopia with a total area of 1.13 million km2 has a total
population of 63.5 million in 2001 out of which about 54
million are rural while 9.5 million are urban.
 The rate of population growth is in the order of 3% per
annum.
 The economy of the country is highly dependent on
agriculture, which is in turn dependent on the availability
of seasonal rainfall.
 Although the country’s renewable surface and ground
freshwater amounts to 123 and 2.6 billion cubic metres
per annum, respectively, its distribution in terms of area
and season does not give adequate opportunity for
sustainable growth to the economy.
 Water Resource Potential of Ethiopia
 Basin studies were first undertaken in the country in the
1950s, and the United States Bureau of Reclamation
(USBR) conducted the Abay River basin study in 1964.
 The potential irrigable land in Ethiopia is about 3.6 million
hectares out of which only 5% has been developed.
 The water sector development programme concluded that
the 12 production of feed, fibre and sugar could not meet
local demands with rainfed agriculture and the current rate
of irrigation development.
 To close the food gap, it is estimated that a further one
million hectares of irrigated land has to be developed in the
next 15 years, which, even if it was possible, is considered
not to be sustainable (MoWR 2001b)
 Water Resource Potential of Ethiopia
No River basin Catch.Area(km2 Annual Runoff(*10^9m3) Specific
) discharge(lit/k
m^2)
1 Abbay 199,812112,00 52.6 7.8
2 Awash 112,700 4.6 1.4
3 Baro Akobo 74,100 23.6 9.7
4 Genale Dawa 171,050 5.88 1.2
5 Mereb 5900 0.26 3.2
6 Omo Ghibe 78,200 17.96 6.7
7 Rift Valley 52,740 5.64 3.4
8 Tekeze 90,000 7.63 3.2
9 Wabi Shebele 200,214 3.16 0.5
10 Danakil 74,000 0.86 0
11 Ogaden 77,100 0 0
12 Aysha 2200 0 0
Total 1,138,016 122.19
 Ground water resource potential is approximately 2.6 billion cubic metres.
 Water Resource Potential of Ethiopia
No River basin Catch.Area(km2 Annual Runoff(*10^9m3) Specific
) discharge(lit/k
m^2)
1 Abbay 199,812112,00 52.6 7.8
2 Awash 112,700 4.6 1.4
3 Baro Akobo 74,100 23.6 9.7
4 Genale Dawa 171,050 5.88 1.2
5 Mereb 5900 0.26 3.2
6 Omo Ghibe 78,200 17.96 6.7
7 Rift Valley 52,740 5.64 3.4
8 Tekeze 90,000 7.63 3.2
9 Wabi Shebele 200,214 3.16 0.5
10 Danakil 74,000 0.86 0
11 Ogaden 77,100 0 0
12 Aysha 2200 0 0
Total 1,138,016 122.19
 Ground water resource potential is approximately 2.6 billion cubic metres.
 Water Resource Potential of Ethiopia
 About 70% of the total rainfall takes place during the
months of June, July and August.
 As a result most of the rivers in Ethiopia are seasonal.
 Dry season flow originates from springs, which provides
base flow for small-scale irrigation.
 The total annual water resource is estimated at 112 km3 , of
which 76.6 km3drain in to the Nile basin.
 The usable ground water resource is estimated to be 2.6
km3 .
 There are numerous lakes in Ethiopia; the eleven major
lakes have a total surface area of about 7000 km2 .
 There are also 12 major river basins. Most of them flow to
Sudan, Eritrea, Lake Turkana and Somalia except Awash
basin, which is endorheic (FAO, 1995).
 Water Resource Potential of Ethiopia
Annual rainfall varies from less than 100 mm
along the border with Somalia and Djibouti to
2400 mm in the south west highlands, whereas the
national average is 744 mm/year.
In the southern and eastern highlands, there is a
pronounced bi-modal rainfall distribution, with the
first and generally smaller rains peaking in April,
and the second in September.
The main dry season extends from October to
February, being longer and drier in the north.
Rainfall variability is important, particularly in the
lower rainfall areas of the northeast highlands
(FAO, 1995)
 Water Resource Potential of Ethiopia
 Ethiopia receives an annual rainfall apparently
adequate for food crop production, and pasture growth
for livestock.
 However, the distribution of rain varies from region to
region.
 Much of the eastern parts of the country receive very
little while the western areas receive adequate rainfall.
 Hence, production of sustainable and reliable food
supply is almost impossible due to temporal and spatial
imbalance in the distribution of rainfall and the
consequential no availability of water at the required
period.
 Sometimes, even the western highlands of the country
suffer from food shortage owing to the discrepancies in
the rainfall distribution (MoWR, 2001).
 What is Surface Water?
Surface water is a term used to describe water in a watercourse, lake or
wetland, and any includes water flowing over or lying on land after
having precipitated naturally.

Types of surface water:

1- permanent (perennial).
2- semi-permanent (ephemeral).
3- manmade.

MAANTIETEEN LAITOS
 Ground Water Resource
 The amount of water stored in the earth’s crust may be of
the order of 8 billion cubic kilometres, half of which is at
depths less than 800 m .
 As compared to surface water resources, Ethiopia has
lower ground water potential.
 This water inside the earth is about 35 times the combined
storage of all the world’s rivers, fresh water lakes,
reservoirs, and inland seas, and is about one-third the
volume of water stored in the arctic and Antarctic ice
fields, the glaciers of Greenland, and the great mountain
systems of the world.

 All of this ground water, however, cannot be utilised

because of physiographic limitations.
 Ground Water Resource
 The estimate of the present ground water resource in India
is of the order of 650 cubic kilometres (as against 1880
cubic km for surface water resources), out of which
utilisable ground water is assessed at around 420 cubic km
(as against 690 cubic km for surface water resources);

 Ground water is that part of the subsurface water which

occurs within the saturated zone of the earth’s crust where
all pores are filled with water.

 Ground water has also been referred to as that part of the

subsurface water which can be lifted or which flows
naturally to the earth’s surface
 Ground Water Resource
 A hole or shaft, usually vertical, is excavated in the earth to
lift ground water to the earth’s surface and is termed a well.
 A well can also be used for disposal of water, artificial
recharge, draining out agricultural lands, and relieving
pressures under hydraulic structures.
 The Chinese are known to be the first to have drilled deep
wells using bamboo rods tipped with iron .
 The rods were lifted and dropped manually and the method
was similar to the method now known as cable tool drilling.
 Ground water flows to the earth’s surface through naturally
discharging springs and streams and rivers which are
sustained by ground water itself when overland runoff is not
present.
 Following significant features of ground water should
always be kept in mind while managing ground water
 Ground Water Resource
 Ground water is a huge water resource, but is exhaustible and
is unevenly available.
 Ground water and surface water resources are interrelated
and, hence, should be considered together.
 Excessive and continued exploitation of ground water must
be avoided as natural replenishment of the ground water
resource is a very slow process.
 Ground water is generally better than surface water in respect
of biological characteristics.
 On the other hand, surface water is generally better than
ground water in terms of chemical characteristics.
 Ground water may be developed in stages on ‘‘pay-as-you-
go’’ or ‘‘pay-as-you-grow’’ basis.
 Surface water development usually needs large initial capital
investment.
 Cont…
 Underground reservoirs storing ground water are more
advantageous than surface reservoirs.
 (a) There is no construction cost involved in underground
reservoirs.
 (b) Underground reservoirs do not silt up, but surface
siltation of recharge areas may appreciably reduce recharge
rates.
(c) The evaporation from underground reservoirs is much less.
 (d) Underground reservoirs do not occupy the land surface
which may be useful for some other purposes.
 (vii) Ground water is generally of uniform temperature and
mineral quality and is free of suspended impurities.
 (viii) Ground water source has indefinite life, if properly
managed
 Ground Water Resource
 Ground water source is replenished through the processes
of infiltration and percolation.
 Infiltration is the process by which the precipitation and
surface water move downward into the soil.
 Percolation is the vertical and lateral movement through the
various openings in the geological formations.
 Natural sources of replenishment include rainwater,
melting snow or ice and water in stream channels, and
lakes or other natural bodies of water.
 Rainwater may infiltrate into the ground directly or while
flowing over the land en route to a river, or stream, or other
water bodies.
 Ground Water Resource
Artificial sources of replenishment (or recharge) include the
following :
 (i) Leakage from reservoirs, conduits, septic tanks, and
similar water related structures.
 (ii) Irrigation, or other water applications including
deliberate flooding of a naturally porous area.
 (iii) Effluents discharged to evaporation or percolation
ponds.
 (iv) Injection through wells or other similar structures
 Irrigation development in Ethiopia
 Ethiopia covers a land area of 1.13 million km2, from which
99.3% is a land area and the remaining 0.7% is covered with
water bodies of lakes (WSDP, 2002).
 It has an arable land area of 10.01% and permanent crops
covered 0.65% and others covered 89.34%.
 The agricultural sector is the leading sector in the Ethiopian
economy, 47.7% of the total GDP, as compared to 13.3% from
industry and 39% from services (WDI, 2005).
 Though, agriculture is the dominant sector; most of Ethiopia’s
cultivated land is under rain-fed agriculture.

 Due to lack of water storage and large spatial and temporal

variations in rainfall, there is no enough water for most farmers
to produce more than one crop per year with frequent crop
failures due to dry spells and droughts which resulted in chronic
food shortage currently facing the country (Awulachew et al.,
2007).
 Irrigation development in Ethiopia
 The development of irrigation and agricultural water
management holds significant potential to improve
productivity and reduce vulnerability to climactic volatility
in any country.
 Irrigation contributes to the national economy in several
ways.
 At the micro level, irrigation leads to an increase in yield
per hectare and subsequent increases in income,
consumption and food security.
 Irrigation enables smallholders to diversify cropping
patterns, and to switch from low-value subsistence
production to high-value market-oriented production,
minimizing crop failure due to dry spell (Fitsum et al.,
2009).
 Irrigation development in Ethiopia
 Although Ethiopia has abundant rainfall and water
resources, its agricultural system does not yet fully
benefited from the technologies of water management and
irrigation (Seleshi, 2010).
 Based on information from river basin master plans the
irrigation potential of the country is estimated at about 3.7
Mha.
 With the consideration of groundwater irrigation (1.1
Mha) and rainwater harvesting (0.5 Mha), the irrigation
potential is estimated at 5.3 Mha (Seleshi, 2010; Abiti,
2011).
 Irrigation development in Ethiopia
 Although traditional irrigation has long years of history, modern
irrigation has started in Ethiopia in 1960s in Awash valley with
the objective of producing industrial crops (Seleshi et al., 2007).
 Sugar estate irrigation schemes of Wonji Shoa and Metahara
were established in 1954 and 1966 respectively; Bilate was
established in 1967 as well as Amibara and Nura Era in 1983.
 The country is committing huge investment to develop irrigation
infrastructures of different scales with the aim to enhance
agricultural production to feed the increasing population,
employment creation, expand export earnings and supply raw
materials to agro-industries.
 Public investment, private, NGOs and farmers own initiatives
are involved in the development of irrigated agriculture.
 Irrigation Potential of Ethiopia
 The definition of irrigation potential is not straightforward
and implies a series of assumptions about irrigation
techniques, investment capacity, national and regional
policies, social, health and environmental aspects, and
international relationships, notably regarding the sharing of
waters. However, to assess the information on land and
water resources at the river basin level, knowledge of
physical irrigation potential is necessary.
 The area which can potentially be irrigated depends on the
physical resources 'soil' and 'water’, combined with the
irrigation water requirements as determined by the cropping
patterns and climate.
 Therefore, physical irrigation potential represents a
combination of information on gross irrigation water
requirements, area of soils suitable for irrigation and
available water resources by basin
 Irrigation Potential of Ethiopia
 The estimates of the irrigation potential of Ethiopia vary from
one source to the other, due to lack of standard or agreed
criteria for estimating irrigation potential in the country.
 The earlier report, for example from the World Bank (1973),
showed the irrigation potential at a lowest of 1.0 and 1.5
million hectares, and a highest of 4.3 million hectares.
 There have also been different estimates of the irrigation
potential in Ethiopia.
 According to the Ministry of Agriculture (1986), the total
irrigable land in the country measures 2.3 million hectares.
 The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD,
1987), on the other hand gives a figure 2.8 million ha.
 A total of 3.7 million ha had been identified as potentially
irrigable land by MoWR (2002).
 Most of these figures are derived by adding up the irrigation
potential of the country’s twelve river basins (Silesh et al,
2007)
 Irrigation Potential of Ethiopia
 According to Fitsum et al (2009) area under irrigation in
2005/06 was about 625,819 ha.

 Estimate made by Seleshi (2010) suggest that about

640,000ha is under irrigation that include 128,000 ha micro
irrigation using rainwater harvesting, 383,000 ha small-
scale, and 129,000 ha from medium and large-scale
irrigation.

 This figure makes the proportion of irrigated agriculture

11.8% of the potential which is still low compared to the
potential and development of other countries.
 Irrigation Potential of Ethiopia
No River basin Catch.Area(km Specific Potential
2) discharge(lit/k irrigable land
m^2)
1 Abbay 199,812112,00 7.8 815,581
2 Awash 112,700 1.4 134,121
3 Baro Akobo 74,100 9.7 1,019,523
4 Genale Dawa 171,050 1.2 1,074,720
5 Mereb 5900 3.2 67,560
6 Omo Ghibe 78,200 6.7 67,928
7 Rift Valley 52,740 3.4 139,300
8 Tekeze 90,000 3.2 83,368
9 Wabi Shebele 200,214 0.5 237,905
10 Danakil 74,000 0 158,776
11 Ogaden 77,100 0
12 Aysha 2200 0
Total 1,138,016
 Constraints in Irrigation Dev‟t in Ethiopia
The main constraints in irrigation development is ;
 lack or inadequacy of baseline studies, data and
information on the potentials of different areas for
irrigation development;
 lack of skilled capacity;
 absence of irrigation extension service;
 poor linkage between research and extension in the areas of
water management;
 lack of start-up capital or access to credit to initiate
irrigation venture;
 lack of private sector participation;
 conflict in water use and water use rights;
 frequent restructuring of responsible institutions;
 limited marketing and market access; and small and
irregular landholdings.
 Water Management, Policies and Legislation Related
to Water in Agriculture
 The big and main water resources problem in Ethiopia is the
uneven spatial and temporal occurrence and distribution.
 Between 80-90% of Ethiopia's water resources is found in the
four river basins namely,
Abay (Blue Nile),
Tekeze,
Baro Akobo, and
Omo Gibe
The lack of a comprehensive water resources
management policy in Ethiopia have so far caused
adverse impacts among which the following stand
out as significant:-
 Cont…
i. The lack of a sustainable and reliable water resources
management strategy.
ii. Lack of efficient utilization of water resources.
iii. Prevalence of unrealistic and unattainable plans and
programmes .
iv. Non-objective oriented programmes and projects
v. Uncertainties and ambiguities in planning
vi. Prevalence of intensive centralism of management that
does not focus on rural development.
vii. Lack of institutional sustainability
viii.Lack of operation and maintenance activities of water
schemes.
ix. Adhoc development practices lacking coherent
objectives and continuity.
 This water resources management policy is based on the;
Constitution of the FDRE Government Macro Economic
and Social policies and
Development strategies as well as objectives accepted by the
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and
The principles of water resources development objectives
that would enhance the socio- economic development of the
peoples of Ethiopia.
 A water policy is a country’s strategy to deal with water-
related issues.
 Water policies are often prepared by governments to guide
governance, management and investments in the water
sector or in relation to water resources.
 A policy can be the culmination of a long period of public
involvement
 Water policy needs to address basic questions such as:

 How much water is available for use, while also

protecting the environment?

 What are the priority uses for this water?

 How much water should be allowed for each use?

 Who determines the priorities and allocations?

 Objectives of water resource management policy
1. Development of the water resources of the country for
economic and social benefits of the people, on
equitable and sustainable basis.

2. Allocation and apportionment of water, based on

comprehensive and integrated plans and optimum
allocation principles that incorporate
Efficiency of use
Equity of access and
Sustainability of the resource.

30
 Cont’d
3. Managing and combating drought as well as other
associated slow on-set disasters through, efficient
allocation, redistribution, transfer, storage and efficient
use of water resources

4. Combating and regulating floods through sustainable

mitigation, prevention, rehabilitation and other practical
measures.

5. Conserving, protecting and enhancing water

resources and the overall aquatic environment on
sustainable basis.
31
 Fundamental principle of water management
policy
A. Water is a natural endowment commonly owned by all
the peoples of Ethiopia.
B. As far as conditions permit, every Ethiopian citizen
shall have access to sufficient water of acceptable
quality, to satisfy basic human needs.
C. In order to significantly contribute to development,
water shall be recognized both as an economic and a
social good.
D. Water resources development shall be underpinned on
rural-centered, decentralized management, participatory
approach as well as integrated framework.
32
 Cont’d

E. Management of water resources shall ensure

Social equity
Economic efficiently
Systems reliability and
Sustainability norms.

F. Promotion of the participation of all stakeholders, user

communities; particularly women's participation in the
relevant aspects of water resources management.

33