Afternoon Session, 26 November 2003
Chairperson: Ato Gizachew Abegaz,
Minister of Agriculture, Land Use Planning, Addis Ababa
Working Group 1:
Lake Tana Basin Integrated
Watershed Management Programme
WORKING GROUP 1 DEVELOPED THE LAKE TANA INTEGRATED WATERSHED MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME. THE LAKE TANA BASIN COMPRISES A TOTAL AREA OF 15 106 KM2 AND A TOTAL LAKE AREA OF 3 000 KM2 BORDERING GONDAR TO THE NORTH, BAHIR DAR TO THE SOUTH, DEBRETABOR TO THE EAST AND KUINZELA TO THE WEST. It is a source of major rivers: Gilgel Abbay, Guara, Blue Nile, Megeche, Dirma, Gelda, etc. It also incorporates wetlands (<1 900 msl), plains (1 900-2 400 msl), hills (2 400-2 900 msl) and mountain ranges (>2 900 msl).
The Lake Tana basin has major global environmental benefits. It is a major source of the Blue Nile and impacts on rain regimes; it is rich in biodiversity with many endemic plant species and cattle breeds; it contains large areas of wetlands; it is home to many endemic birds and cultural and archaeological sites. This basin has also critical national significance as it has the potential to be the breadbasket of Ethiopia; vast water resources potential for irrigation; enormous potential to develop hydroelectric power (including exporting it to neighbouring countries); rich potential for development of high value crops and livestock production; high potential for ecotourism and other livelihood strategies outside farming.
Threats
Lake Tana related threats include: silt load, pollution, drainage; water level fluctuation; over-exploitation of specific fish species; conflict of interest in the use of the water; surrounding area in the form of deforestation, water logging, flooding, overgrazing, population pressure, and degradation.
Livelihood threats related to poverty below national average; disease such as malaria, bilharzias, HIV/AIDS; unemployment; too many religious holidays; underdeveloped infrastructure and poor communication including roads, water, health, etc.
Rural energy threats are in the form of: lack of alternative energy sources; lack of energy for cottage industries and agriculture; competitive relationship between energy and agriculture; energy use not responding to land degradation concern; household energy demand much higher than supply.
Political and institutional related threats include poor linkage among institutions, lack of coordination, lack of decision support tools, tenure insecurity, weak institutions, and limited capacity to manage and monitor project and programme activities.
Objectives, Output and Main Areas of Intervention
The main findings of WG 1 in terms of objectives, expected output and main activities for the proposed Lake Tana Integrated Watershed management programme is presented in the following page in Table 3.
Table 3: Summary of Working Group 1 on Lake Tana Integrated Watershed Management
Specific Objectives |
Expected Output |
Intervention Areas/Main Activities |
||
Ensure improved and sustainable use/management of resources |
· deforestation controlled and
reforestation/regeneration of forestland increased; |
· physical and biological soil
and water conservation measures; |
||
Promote income generation and diversification scheme |
· both on-farm and off-farm
income increased; |
· rural micro-enterprise
development and off-farm skills development schemes; |
||
Strengthen capacity of institutions, local communities. |
· capacity of institutions
improved; |
· support the capacity of
regional bureaux such as the Land Use Management Bureau; |
||
Improved supply and use of rural energy including alternative rural energy sources |
· impact of urban energy demand
on rural forestlands minimized; |
· introduce alternative energy
supply augmenting measures like increased supply base of fuelwood and other
renewable energy sources; |
||
Develop networking, lobbying and information exchange capacity |
· data and information made
available for planning and policy development purposes; |
· collect and develop base line
data using GIS, and other tools; |
Implementation Modalities, Strategies and Approaches
The programme will:
link with national and regional programmes;
integrate renewable energy development and efficient use as a centre of the project;
integrate natural resources and environment initiatives;
involve main stakeholders such as the Environmental Protection Authority, universities and colleges, research institutes, farmer training centres and NGOs;
link with NGOs and donor projects;
references to regional and international conventions and treaties;
identify and use existing policy instruments and incentive schemes;
ensure project impact at the household level;
ensure the involvement of local organization and people, beneficiaries' ownership, accountability and gender mainstreaming;
integrate value added marketing and markets;
apply demand driven approach in extension programme and generation of innovations;
introduce the partnerships of public-private-NGOs-farmer.
Working Group 2:
Simen Mountains National Park
(SMNP) Management Programme
The SMNP has important global significance in terms of being repository of biodiversity (39 mammals of which eight are endemic in this area); it is declared as a World Heritage site; it contains tropical highland biome and is source of the Tekeze river which is a tributary of the Blue Nile. It has also great national significance due to its high biodiversity and wildlife resources and income from tourism. It is also a symbol of national heritage.
Threats
serious land and natural resources degradation;
loss of biodiversity and disappearance of specific species;
deforestation, shortage of fuel wood and construction wood;
overgrazing;
poverty and food insecurity and lack of alternative livelihood systems;
population pressure;
lack of coordination between tourism development and park management;
rights to land and other resources by local land users not clarified yet;
no institution in place yet to deal with land disputes and no regulation for zoning for different land uses;
lack of development for ecotourism and park management;
lack of mechanism for benefit sharing with local people;
lack of infrastructure development and access to basic services.
Objectives, Output and Main Areas of Intervention
The main findings of WG 2 in terms of objectives, expected output and main activities for the proposed SMNP is presented in the following page in Table 4.
Table 4: Summary of Working Group 2 on Simen Mountains National Park Programme Objectives, Expected Outcome and Main Areas of Intervention
Specific Objectives |
Expected Output |
Intervention Areas/Main Activities |
Conserve and enhance biodiversity values |
· biodiversity is preserved
in situ; |
· identify biodiversity in the
Simen area and develop inventories and databases; |
Conserve and develop the natural resources in a sustainable manner |
· soil productivity is enhanced
leading to increased agricultural, livestock and forest production; |
· village management plans
including protection, conservation, utilization, and development; |
Improve rural livelihoods |
· household income increased and
diversified; |
· promoting other income
generation activities outside farming; |
Empower stakeholders and strengthen their capacities in managing and conserving the Simen Mountains ecosystems in a sustainable manner |
· local people involved in
decision making to manage their forest, wildlife and biodiversity resources and
manage their ecosystem; |
· strengthen community
organization, local capacity and skills in decision making process; |
Implementation strategies/modalities/approaches
people-centreed, gender sensitive and participatory development approaches - agreement on a long-term vision among all concerned stakeholders before any concrete project planning activities are initiated;
focus on few pilot areas since the Simen Mountains are a huge area and then scale-up activities to cover other areas;
initially promote activities around the park first because problems are very pronounced there with national and international attention;
long-term commitment by Government, donors, researchers, etc.;
continuous monitoring, evaluation and environmental impact assessment (ecological, economic, social and cultural impact assessment) of any intervention project/programmes;
focal institutions to coordinate conservation and development activities in the Simen Mountains area.
Working Group 3:
Borkena-Robi Catchment
Integrated Watershed Management Programme
The Borkena-Robi watershed covering part of WG 3 selected Wollo and the Central Shewa highlands as a topic for further discussion. The Borkena-Robi integrated watershed management contributes to global important issues since it is a home to a number of endemic plants, mammals and birds and large area wetland ecosystem. Since this area is recurrently affected by drought and famine, the development of these areas will be highly significant to the countries effort to attain food security and arrest natural resources degradation. The project would also try to reduce natural hazards such as flooding and improve local institution capacity to manage natural resources including resolving resource-use conflict between those who practise sedentary agriculture and pastoralist who live in adjacent lowlands.
Global, National and Local Significance
The Borkena-Robi integrated watershed management contributes to global important issues since it is a home to a number of endemic plants, mammals and birds and large area wetland ecosystem. Since this area is recurrently affected by drought and famine, the development of these areas will be highly significant to the country's effort to attain food security and arrest natural resources degradation. The project would also try to reduce natural hazards such as flooding and improve local institution capacity to manage natural resources including resolving resource-use conflicts between those who practice sedentary agriculture and pastoralist who live in adjacent lowlands.
Threats and Challenges
The programme area faces a number of threats and challenges calling for urgent intervention. The area is characterized by very high population pressure with limited carrying capacity. There is a traditional resource-use conflict between the Amhara, the Oromo, the Afar and the Argoba people. There is wide spread soil erosion and degradation due to overgrazing, severe deforestation and poor land management practices. This results in recurrent flood and drought, loss of biodiversity, severe shortage of fuelwood, water scarcity and widespread poverty.
Programme Objectives, Expected Output and Main Areas of Intervention
The main findings of WG 3 in terms of objectives, expected output and main activities proposed for the Borkena-Robi integrated watershed management is presented in the following page in Table 5.
Table 5: Borkena-Robi Integrated Watershed Management Expected Output
Expected Output |
Intervention Areas/Main Activities |
· improved productivity and
income; |
· soil fertility/soil
conservation and management; |
· endangered endemic mammal and
bird life and plant protected; |
· survey of important plant and
animal species; |
· increased access to
alternative energy sources and technologies; |
· raising awareness on rural
energy resource development and use; |
· improved community and
farmers' involvement in decision-making capacity in development and conservation
activities (i.e. introduction of by-laws); |
· integrating indigenous
knowledge and practice with new technologies; |
· availability and access to
food enhanced; |
· introduction of improved
agricultural productivity; |
· conducive and supportive policy and regulatory framework in place. |
· review and identify policy
gaps and overlaps; |
Implementation Modalities, Strategies and Approaches
The programme will take an integrated approach, which will try maximizing synergy among various sectors and subsectors to overcome existing development challenges. Community orientation, strong interagency coordination, networking and partnership of stakeholders will be central in the operation of the project. Special effort will made to integrate gender, environmental sustainability, HIV/AIDS and rural energy issues in the implementation of the project activities. The programme will also integrate lobbying and advocacy functions to influence polices at regional and central levels.