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This study reviewed the status of natural resources and the driving forces for change, as well as past and ongoing approaches in natural resource management at the watershed scale in Ethiopia. First, we reviewed established environmental policy tools and the legal and policy framework, and determined whether innovative financing mechanisms are working in other areas with a similar context. We undertook stakeholder analyses and mapping to identify key stakeholders, and to assess their possible roles in the implementation of a sustainable financing mechanism for watershed rehabilitation. We also determined whether opportunities exist for financing mechanisms involving hydropower and urban water supply in payments for ecosystem services (PES), and the global community in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) in the context of the Bale Eco-region. The study identified major constraints to designing an appropriate financing mechanism. Finally, the study drew important conclusions and key policy implications that are relevant for Ethiopia and perhaps other areas in a similar context.

Understanding the problem of land degradation in a given spatial and temporal context, requires looking at the community baseline conditions such as the natural resource base, human resources, existing institutions and infrastructure base, and how these conditions interact with policies and institutions to influence human responses and thereby affect productivity, livelihood security and the natural resource base. This study provides a description of the land users' priorities, attitudes and perceptions, household characteristics and socio-economic status, access to credit, and farm inputs, tenurial arrangements and variations in land quality and technology characteristics and their effects on the households' interest in and ability to invest in conservation technologies based on a preliminary statistical analysis from a survey of 400 households in 16 communities carried out in 1998. Furthermore, it poses important questions that could serve as basis for further rigorous econometric analysis and future research endeavor. Norges Forskningsråd

Using a production function, marginal productivity of farm inputs and benefit-cost analysis, we explore the economics of selected water control technologies. From the production function, all farm inputs, including irrigation water is found to have a significant and positive effect on yield. Marginal value products of farm inputs are found to be positive but their magnitudes differ by type of control structures, crop type, agro-ecology and regions. The net present values of all water control structures are positive. There is a favorable precondition for sustainable adoption of these controls technologies and institutionalizing some sort of cost recovery schemes. The level of education, the ratio of irrigated land allocated to irrigated annuals and perennials, access to markets and off-farm income are found to have significant effect on successful use of these control structures. Recommendations and policy implications are drawn accordingly.Keywords: water control, NPV, production function, instrumental variables regression; Africa.

In Erkossa, Teklu; Hagos, Fitsum; Lefore, Nicole. (Eds.). 2014. Proceedings of the Workshop on Flood-based Farming for Food Security and Adaption to Climate Change in Ethiopia: Potential and Challenges, Adama, Ethiopia, 30-31 October 2013. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Agriculture is the most significant contributor to Ethiopia’s economy. Most of the agricultural production is under rainfed conditions and thus extremely sensitive to rainfall variability. Irrigation development, including smallholder irrigation, is used by the Ethiopian Government to attempt to mitigate the effects of rainfall variability. In this study, we look at smallholder irrigation - modern and traditional irrigation systems. A detailed description of the cropping patterns is given. The stochastic frontier production function approach is used to estimate technical inefficiency, and constraints to production are analyzed. Since the traditional system is found to be efficient but on a lower production frontier, the study shows that significant gains can be made by raising the frontier of the traditional systems and increasing the efficiency of the modern systems. Among the production constraints studied were land preparation, soil fertility, weed control, pests and diseases, soil erosion, input access and moisture deficiency. The most significant constraints on the irrigated systems were input access and moisture deficiency.

It is the belief of many analysts that agrarian countries like Ethiopia that depend on rain-fed agriculture are significantly vulnerable to rainfall variability, the risk which tends to aggravate with global climate change. Consequently, it is believed that future increases in food supplies and economic prosperity depend heavily on effective agricultural water management. It is with this in mind that the use of low-cost technologies for rainwater and runoff control, storage, water lifting, conveyance and application have become more widespread in Ethiopia since the recent drought of 2002/2003. A range of technologies are currently used with varying levels of impacts. This paper outlines an inventory, characterization, suitability and upscaling aspects of Agricultural Water Management Technologies (AWMT) in Ethiopia. Particular characteristics of each of the technologies, their suitability for a given environment, and the necessary conditions for their successful adoption and scaling up are identified. Furthermore, a variety of combinations of technologies used for control or storage, lifting, conveyance and application of rainwater are documented. Suitability of a technology in a particular environment depends on many factors, such as, the nature of technical complexity, the existing institutional and individual capacity to implement, the costs and benefits, etc. Technical considerations include implementation (set up), operation and maintenance, affordability and environmental impact. The results of a ranking exercise of the technical complexity of a given technology are presented. Concerns related to waterborne and water-related diseases due to stagnation, water quality and possibility of mosquito breeding are discussed. Households in some parts of Ethiopia, who have practiced improved agricultural water management suitable to their local conditions, have managed to diversify their incomes through beekeeping, livestock, intercropping cash crops with food crops and setting up shops, hotels and flour mills in the nearby towns or villages. Therefore, AWMT at smallholder level meet the intended purpose, provided that they are suitable and adaptable to the local circumstances. The question is which of the technologies are suitable to which area under what socioeconomic conditions?, In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Erkossa, Teklu; Balcha, Y. (Comps.). Irrigation and water for sustainable development: proceedings of the Second Forum, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 15-16 December 2008. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Irrigation development is seen as one of the means to reduce poverty and promote economic growth. While a lot of effort is exerted towards irrigation development, little attempt is done to quantify the contribution of irrigation to national income in Ethiopia. This study is an attempt to quantify the actual and expected contribution of irrigation to the Ethiopian national economy for 2005/06 cropping season and 2009/10 using adjusted net gross margin analysis. Our results show that irrigation in the study sites generates an average income of about USD 323/ ha. This compares to the calculated gross margin for rainfed which is USD 147/ha. This indicates that after accounting for annual investment replacement cost net gross margin from irrigation is more than twice higher than gross margin from rainfed agriculture. On the contribution of irrigation to national economy, in 2005/06 smallholder irrigated agriculture contributed about 262.3 million USD. This accounts for about 4.46 percent of the agricultural GDP in 2005/2006 and 1.97 percent of the total overall GDP. The total income earned from large scale schemes is estimated to be about 74.0 million USD. This accounts for about 1.26 percent of the agricultural and 0.5 percent of the total GDP respectively. Overall, the contribution of irrigation to agricultural and total national GDP was about 5.7 and 2.5 percent during the 2005/06 cropping season. As a result of expansion, by the year 2009/2010 the expected contribution of smallholder managed irrigation to national economy, assuming that exiting cropping pattern, and the average gross margin values for different crop categories are still valid, is expected to increase from USD 262.3 million in 2005/2006 to about USD 414.2 million in 2009/2010, which accounts to about 5.5 percent of the agricultural GDP and 2.3 of the overall GDP for the same year. On the other hand, the contribution coming from the large scale sugar growing estates in 2009/2010 is estimated to be USD 217.5 million which amounts to 2.9 and 1.2 percent of the agricultural and overall GDP respectively. Similarly the contribution coming from large scale commercial farms growing crops other than sugar cane is expected to increase to USD 35.8 million in 2009/2010 which accounts to 0.4 and 0.2 percent of the agricultural and overall GDP respectively. This implies that large scale commercial farms will contribute about 3.3 and 1.4 of the agricultural and overall GDP respectively. In summary, our results indicate that under conservative estimates the future contribution of irrigation to agricultural and overall GDP will be about 9 and 3.7 percent respectively. When some of the assumptions related to cropping pattern, input and output prices, 128 and efficiency levels are relaxed, the contribution of smallholder managed irrigation to agricultural and overall GDP will vary between 4 to 6 and 1.8 to 1.9 percent respectively. Similarly, the contribution from large scale irrigation to agricultural and overall GDP will be in the range of 3 to 6 and 1.2 to 2.5 percent respectively. Overall, the future contribution of irrigation to agricultural GDP will be in the range of 7 to 12 percent while the contribution to overall GDP will be in the range of about 4 percent. To enhance the contribution of irrigation to national economy, besides increasing the presence of physical water infrastructure, however, there is a need to: i) improve provision of agricultural inputs, ii) promote high value crops through the extension system, iii) create good market conditions, and iv) increase the efficiency of small and large schemes., In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Loulseged, Makonnen; Yilma, Aster Denekew (Comps.). Impact of irrigation on poverty and environment in Ethiopia: draft proceedings of the symposium and exhibition, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 27-29 November 2007. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Transboundary water resource governance is premised on equitable water and water-related benefit sharing. Using the case of the Blue Nile (Ethiopia and Sudan), we explore the conceptual issues that need consideration in the crafting of cross-border cooperation within the water sector. First, drawing on global experiences with transboundary water management, we evaluate how upstream and downstream concerns are addressed by transboundary water management institutions. Second, we explore the kinds of institutional design and the issues which need to be considered to result in ‘win-win’ scenarios for both upstream and downstream users, as well as the mechanisms of benefit sharing negotiated amongst different stakeholders. Third, we examine ways of addressing equity and livelihoods in transboundary institutional arrangements. Finally, we attempt to assess how transboundary institutions can address broader historical, political and economic issues and their implications for sustainable transboundary water governance. This paper raises key issues that need to be addressed in establishing transboundary governance institutions., In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Erkossa, Teklu; Smakhtin, Vladimir; Fernando, Ashra (Comps.). Improved water and land management in the Ethiopian highlands: its impact on downstream stakeholders dependent on the Blue Nile. Intermediate Results Dissemination Workshop held at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 5-6 February 2009. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Land and water institutions play a vital role in managing and sustaining land and water resources as well as enhancing economic development and poverty alleviation efforts. While a lot has been done in terms of understanding the micro-determinants of farmers’ decisions in land and water conservation, there is little attempt to understand the broad macro-institutional and organizational issues that influence land and water management decisions. The objective of the study was to assess institutional arrangements and challenges for improved land and water management in the Ethiopian part of the Blue Nile Basin (Tana and Beles subbasins). Focus group discussions and key informant interviews were held in Amhara and Benishangul Gumuz regions with important stakeholders such as the bureaus of Agriculture and Rural Development, Water Resources Development, Environmental Protection and Land Use Administration (EPLUA), National Agricultural Research Systems, and important NGOs, operating in the area of land and water management, and selected community members. As the major findings in this study, we outlined major land and water-related institutional arrangements that are currently in place and their design features, in order to identify those institutions related to superior performance. We highlighted major institutional and policy gaps and actions that are required to respond to emerging issues of environmental degradation, upstream/downstream linkages and climate change. Such analysis of institutions and their design features provides useful insights and contributes to the debate on institutional reform for improved land and water management in the Blue Nile Basin, in general. By doing so, it identifies the gaps in institutional arrangements and policies and potential remedies., In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Erkossa, Teklu; Smakhtin, Vladimir; Fernando, Ashra (Comps.). Improved water and land management in the Ethiopian highlands: its impact on downstream stakeholders dependent on the Blue Nile. Intermediate Results Dissemination Workshop held at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 5-6 February 2009. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

The study examined the extent and nature of market oriented production in irrigated compared to rainfed systems in Ethiopia. By doing so the paper identifies the role of irrigation in market-oriented production, while at the same time highlighting the main constraints to market oriented development. Our results indicate that irrigation contributes significantly to increases in market participation, volume of marketed produce and, hence, income, by inducing shifts in farmers’ cropping mix. The impact of commercialization of production on household food security is not direct and immediate mainly because of failures in the food market. While irrigation enhances market production, there are series of factors that pose serious constraints to market production. Land size, oxen holding, access to market and means of transport were found to be important determinants of market oriented production calling for policy interventions in land markets, access to productive assets and infrastructure development and policy measures to improve the performance of agricultural markets. The study also found education has market promoting effect in terms of increasing the probability of participation and volume of sale. Increased support to education can, thus, help in the long-term to transform traditional subsistence agriculture into more market-oriented agriculture. Finally there are unobserved site specific effects, related to location and other covariates, which influence market participation and volume decisions., In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Loulseged, Makonnen; Yilma, Aster Denekew (Comps.). Impact of irrigation on poverty and environment in Ethiopia: draft proceedings of the symposium and exhibition, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 27-29 November 2007. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Through rapid assessment of existing literature and review of policy and other official documents, the report synthesizes the existing knowledge and gaps on policies and institutions and identifies key research issues that need in-depth study. The report provides an overview of the range of key livelihoods and production systems in the Blue Nile Basin (BNB) and highlights their relative dependence on, and vulnerability to, water resources and water-related ecosystem services. It also makes an inventory of current water and land related policies and institutions in the BNB, their organizational arrangements, dynamics and linkages and key policy premises. It highlights the major problems in institutional arrangements and policy gaps and makes suggestions for an in-depth Policy and Institutional Studies to be done as part of the Upstream-Downstream Research project.

Recently, there has been very little irrigation development in sub-Saharan Africa. The main reasons cited for this lack of interest in developing irrigation in sub-Saharan Africa is that irrigation projects are expensive and perform poorly compared to projects from other regions. However, when classified into success and failure projects, the sub-Saharan Africa success projects’ investment costs are not significantly higher than from other regions. African countries like Ethiopia, which has embarked on an agricultural led development program, aspire to use irrigation as a development strategy with small scale irrigation playing a key role in rural development. This study evaluates the financial performance of small scale irrigation using O & M and investment recovery, and the ability to replicate the investments. It is concluded that the systems are financially viable and provide a low cost development option for rural areas., In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Loulseged, Makonnen; Yilma, Aster Denekew (Comps.). Impact of irrigation on poverty and environment in Ethiopia: draft proceedings of the symposium and exhibition, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 27-29 November 2007. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

The purpose of the undertaken study was to evaluate the impact that the modern Hare river irrigation scheme had on household food security as well as on lifestyle changes of the population in the study site Chano Chalba. This was done on the basis of the FAO food security pillars access to food, availability of food, utilization of food and the overall factor of food stability. RRA tools were used to conduct a before-after comparison, considering a ten years period. The quantitative data was analysed using SPSS and/or Excel and simple statistical measures such as cross tabulations, frequencies, percentages and means gave a visible overview of the outcomes. The modern irrigation scheme did not affect the livelihood and food situation directly but indirectly through other modernizations that came with and after the construction of the modern main canal, e.g. road, merchants, agricultural office, health centre, drinking water points, school, electricity etc. The major trigger was the introduction of a new banana type so that farmers changed from food crops to cash crops to earn a higher income. Following, the wealth situation of the population ameliorated but less food crops are produced and people become more dependent on the local market. The infrastructure of the study site developed in a positive way but still education, especially on food issues, are needed to have a sustainable repercussion and to secure people’s health and food situation. Further positive changes on the food situation could be able if the higher income was utilized more efficiently and if the construction of the modern irrigation scheme had been more appropriate and by incorporating the farmer’s requests., In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Loulseged, Makonnen; Yilma, Aster Denekew (Comps.). Impact of irrigation on poverty and environment in Ethiopia: draft proceedings of the symposium and exhibition, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 27-29 November 2007. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Ethiopia is an agrarian society in a land of drought and floods. Agricultural production, which is the source of livelihood for eight out of ten Ethiopians, is extremely vulnerable to climatic conditions. The causes of rural poverty are many including wide fluctuations in agricultural production as a result of drought, ineffective and inefficient agricultural marketing system, under developed transport and communication networks, underdeveloped production technologies, limited access of rural households to support services, environmental degradation and lack of participation by rural poor people in decisions that affect their livelihoods. However, the persistent fluctuation in the amount and distribution of rainfall is considered as a major factor in rural poverty. Cognizant of this reality the successive Ethiopian governments and farmers have made investments in small scale irrigation schemes. This paper aims to assess the efficacy of these investments in reducing poverty based on data obtained from a survey of 1024 farmers drawn from four major regional states of Ethiopia. The Foster, Greer and Thorbecke poverty measures were used to compare the incidence, depth and severity of poverty among groups of farmers defined by relevant policy variables including access to irrigation. In order to explore the correlates of rural poverty and their quantitative significance, logistic regression model was estimated. The main conclusion of the study is that the incidence, depth and severity of poverty is affected more by the intensity of irrigation use (as measured by the size of irrigated area) than mere access to irrigation. Alternatively, there seems to be an economy of scale in the poverty irrigation relationship., In Awulachew, Seleshi Bekele; Loulseged, Makonnen; Yilma, Aster Denekew (Comps.). Impact of irrigation on poverty and environment in Ethiopia: draft proceedings of the symposium and exhibition, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 27-29 November 2007. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI)