Ethiopia: OCHA calls for increased support to water-harvesting schemes

(Addis Ababa, 8 December 2003): The United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Ethiopia has asked for increased support to water-harvesting schemes in that country, following a mission to evaluate the programme. Under the direction of the Ministry of Agriculture, the program is a key element of the government's efforts to increase food security for rural populations countrywide.
In Amhara and Tigray, a total of approximately 70,000 ponds and tanks were constructed last fiscal year alone. A few hundred thousand more are to follow. They will help reduce poverty and increase food security by making water available to irrigate and produce higher value crops and provide water for livestock. A secondary, but equally important benefit, is the provision of water for household use, greatly decreasing the work involved in fetching water, further increasing time that household members can devote to productive labour.

The program has demonstrated that success is possible if proper construction is undertaken, linings of ponds are properly prepared and ponds are placed properly to receive and hold maximum runoff from rainfall. The ponds can provide additional water for irrigation of smallholdings of land during the rainy season, and can provide water for a few weeks after the end of the season to ensure better yields.

The humanitarian community is extremely interested in seeing such longer-term initiatives succeed to reduce dependence on humanitarian food aid, and thus improve livelihoods for the future.

UN organizations including the World Food Program (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), several bi-lateral and multi-lateral donors, as well as NGOs, are currently supporting approaches to better utilize rainfall. Some are directly supporting water-harvesting type schemes.

For more information, please contact OCHA - Ethiopia Tel: 251- 1- 44 44 14 / 251- 1- 44 41 51; fax: 251- 1- 511292; email: ocha-eth@un.org; website: www.ocha-eth.org