A flood-worn ravine landscape in a watershed in Boset district, Oromia region

25 October 2017, Addis Ababa – An assessment report conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources, (MoANR), with the support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has indicated that the intensity and frequency of rainwater floods and its scale of destruction are increasing from time to time in Ethiopia. In addition to affecting the lives and livelihoods base of more and more people every year, floods affect the agriculture sector by washing away fertile soil, farmland, field crops and pastureland.

Speaking at the workshop held in October 2017 to validate the assessment report on Watershed causing floods and intervention plan development, Tefera Tadesse, Director of the Natural Resources Management Directorate of the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources noted that, “Flood prevention and mitigation efforts require collaboration and integration of activities with of all stakeholders in and outside the agriculture sector. Infrastructure like highway and railway constructions and investments sectors can affect watersheds directly.” 

Unlike drought and similar disasters, floods happen suddenly and can cause huge damage on lives and livelihoods in a short period of time, said Amare Mengiste, Natural Resources Management Team Leader, FAO. “Excessive rain and overflowing rivers commonly cause floods in Ethiopia. In additional to the growing impact of climate change and weather variability, mismanagement of natural resources especially watershed is the main cause of floods.” 

The Ethiopian Government and partners have been working on natural resources management, and due emphasis was given in the Growth and Transformation Plan II (GTP II). However, the challenges remained and floods are causing damage to lives and livelihood during the rainy seasons in different parts of Ethiopia. 

Our main gap was lack of accurate and up-to-date information and resources on the location, scale and impacts of potential flooding, said Amare. 

“And our actions were more of response to flood victims than prevention, preparedness and early action. The study identified areas vulnerable to flooding, the main flood causing rivers and water bodies and impacts caused by flooding as well as identified priority interventions areas and activities.”  

To facilitate addressing the most urgent priority areas and effective intervention plans, FAO assisted the MoANR to conduct the study on Watershed causing floods and intervention plan development to indicate watersheds that cause floods and to recommend development interventions. 

The study that has covered four regions and one city administration including Amhara, Oromia, Afar and Dire Dawa showed that multiple reasons such as poor vegetation cover, over cultivation, deforestation, land degradation, improper land use for farming and pasture, poorly designed infrastructure and overall lack of conservation measures and mismanagement of watershed contributed to frequent and raging floods. 

The study recommended various intervention activities including soil and water conservation and forestry development. Some of these activities are hillside terraces, seedling plantation, enrichment plantation, area enclosure, detention pond construction, trenches and gully rehabilitations. 

“From what we have learned, if the critical watersheds in the 11 districts in the regions are treated with the recommended intervention activities, the negative impacts of floods on lives and livelihoods can be reduced successfully,” said Tefera. 

According to the assessment study, a total of ETB 131 575 998.00 (USD 4 860 314.28) is required to implement the recommended intervention plans for the selected micro watersheds. 

Within its programme, FAO has prioritized sustainable natural resources management to address the challenges with environmental degradation, inefficient system of land and water use for agriculture and forest resources. 

In addition to supporting this study, FAO assisted implementation of integrated watershed interventions including flood mitigation and catchment conservation measures in North Gondar and South Wollo Zones of Amhara region. The project achieved – rehabilitation of degraded and unproductive lands, reducing flood risks through flood mitigation structures, integrated watershed management increased and income and livelihoods of communities improved, and reduced flood-induced fear and trauma of the communities. 

#             #          # 

• FAO is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. FAO is also a source of knowledge and information, and helps developing countries in transition modernize and improve agriculture, forestry and fisheries practices, ensuring good nutrition and food security for all 

Contact:

Tamiru Legesse, FAO, National Communication Officer

E-mail: [email protected], Tel. 0911861293