Poster prepared by Kindu Mekonnen, Alan Duncan (ILRI) and Tilahun Amede (ICRISAT) for the ILRI APM 2013, Addis Ababa, 15-17 May 2013

1. Unlocking livestock development potential through science, influence and capacity
development ILRI APM, Addis Ababa, 15-17 May 2013
Developing capacity Influencing decisions
Water harvesting and spring development to adapt to climate
change in Kabe watershed, Ethiopia
This document is licensed for use under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported Licence May 2013
Strategic lessons:
Community groups formulated
bye-laws to sustainably use
improved springs.
Credit for dam construction and
rope and washer pump
installation enabled uptake.
Kindu Mekonnen, Alan Duncan (ILRI) and Tilahun Amede (ICRISAT)
Delivering science
Benefits maximized when crop types
matched with irrigation method and
frequency of the harvested water.
Introduction
Rainfall is highly variable in Kabe watershed and the surrounding areas, and this variability makes
agricultural production challenging. There is also poor quality and quantity of water within and outside
the watershed. Spring development and water harvesting schemes were initiated to enhance the
capacity of communities to adapt to climate variability.
Methodology
Results
Plate 1. Improved spring Plate 2. Water harvesting facilities (a) dam and Rope
and washer pump fitted on hand dug well
Partners: ILRI, UNEP, Wollo University, ARARI (SARC) and Woreilu woreda Office of Agriculture.
 213 farm households benefited from the two improved springs (Plate 1).
 Three hand dug wells, and one water harvesting dam were constructed (Plates 2 and 3).
 Water volume of the dam was 64,000 litres. The hand dug wells can irrigate 0.13 -0.5 ha of land.
 The discharge rate for hand dug wells and improved springs are 0.35-2.75 and 3.67-9.63 litres/min.
 Communities are protected from water-borne diseases and have access to clean drinking water.
(a) (b)
Plate 3. Veg produced with harvested water
 Engagement exercises with the communities.
 Water harvesting dam, spring development and hand dug wells established.
 Water harvesting interventions integrated with forage development and home-garden initiatives.
Acknowledgment: We thank researchers, extension staff and farmers who contributed to this piece of work.