Enhancing Communities’ Adaptive Capacity to Climate Change in
Drought-prone Hotspots of the Blue Nile basin (Kabe, Ethiopia)
(Wollo University, ILRI, UNEP, ARARI)
Tilahun Amede and Yitbarek W/Hawariat
,
Stakeholders’ Workshop on Enhancing Communities’ Adaptive Capacity to Climate
Change Induced Water Scarcity in Kabe Watershed, South Wollo Zone
Wollo University, Dessie, Ethiopia, 24-25 November 2011

Nile Basin Development Challenge (NBDC)
• NBDC research focuses on the Ethiopian
highlands and will examine the interrelated issues
of rainwater management at Landscape and Sub-
basin scales;
• Understanding causes and its consequences of low
rainwater productivity;
• Innovations for improving rainwater management
systems; addressing poverty, vulnerability and
resources degradation in the basin.
o Managing rainfall variability; increased water
storage;
o Crop and livestock water productivity;
o Minimizing land degradation and downstream
siltation of water storage
infrastructure, increased biomass;
o Resilient communities and systems that will
manage climatic and market shocks

Nile BDC
Rainwater
Management
Systems

Linkages
Sub-regional Impact
Nile 1.
Learning
Inventory
and synthesis
Nile 2.
Nile 4. Nile 5.
Innovations,
Land-scape Consequences Coordination
, impact, tra , platforms
Linkages
technologies
deoffs , practices
Nile 3.
Mapping,
targeting.
Up-scaling
Farm level
Communication
Linkages

Why Kabe Watershed?
• Both Programmes of CPWF and UNEP are
focusing on the Nile basin; significance to the
region, competition / regional peace??
• CPWF Nile has already three sites, high
rainfall, relatively high potential..
• UNEP is interested in drought-prone areas, in
the Nile;
• Presence of potential partnership/ access
• Demand from communities and willingness of
local institutions

Five fundamental challenges for Land and water
management in Ethiopian Highlands :
• Limited engagement of local actors in designing Watershed
management –related initiatives; differ from their perceived
priorities;
• Physical investment on land and water management was
not accompanied by short-term incentives of farmers’
choices; a policy decision without linking it to the local
contexts.
• Local knowledge is questioned ; dominant external
knowledge systems, undermining local “best practice” and
eroding traditional institutions.
• Limited access to knowledge, inputs and services related to
improved technologies and extension services;
• Weak institutional arrangements and sectoral policies

Working Principles
• It is a Research for Development Project;
• Embraces a whole range of practices; from in situ
moisture conservation and water harvesting, various
forms of irrigation to soil and water conservation and
livestock management;
• Promote strategies that foster maximum economic use
of rainwater that falls onto the hillside and agricultural
field;
• Use climate smart technologies as entry points to
change farmer’s income and behavior, but also enable
adaptation to change
• Closely work with the local administration and local
community towards climate change adaptation

Overview pictures

Specific objectives would be:
• While introducing various technologies and practices, identify
key socio-economic factors (barriers and opportunities)
affecting adoption, and effective utilization of land and water
management interventions (e.g. livestock feed, water
harvesting, watering points for livestock);
• In alignment with NBDC, create a local, knowledge-base forum
that would enable communities, local administration and
development actors (NGOs) to share best practices and
improve their collective action for improved water management;
• To develop a relevant knowledge base (including extension
guides) appropriate for the local extension system to apply
climate smart interventions;
• To generate local evidence that may contribute to the regional
and global debate on climate change issues, related to
UNFCCC, UNFCCD, CSD, Nile BDC

Activities
Stakeholder workshops to introduce the project, receive
feedback from local actors and share lessons;
Experimentation with communities and dissemination
of climate change adaptation interventions;
Assemble knowledge on perceptions, incentives,
constraints and collective action schemes affecting adoption
of climate adaptation strategies;
Mapping and targeting land and water related interventions
in the landscape;
Training of local extension agents, communities and other
development actors in the area;
Development and dissemination of materials to upscale
lessons learnt to influence regional and national policy;
Final end of project workshop, for sharing key insights, and
policy influence

Methods and approaches
• Focus on Kabe watershed; to be delineated
• Introduce the project to the local communities through the local
administration;
• Map the whole resources base, identify key challenges and niches;
• Local community facilitator, to build collective action, facilitate
change and support the local extension system;
• Establish farmers’ research groups for joint experimentation;
• Provide technological options; through ILRI, ARARI, Wollo Uni..
• Use local schools as technology hubs;
• Continual community feedback meetings;
• Frequent update of progress to key stakeholders;
• Collect scientific data through the facilitator, PhD and MSc students
and ARARI;
• Synthesis of Knowledge emerging from R4D

Climate-smart Interventions
• Through Niche analysis, community
prioritization, introduce forages (e.g Napier
relatives) as bund
stabilizers, gullies, homesteads…
• Climate proof food security options for Belg
(Potato, early maturing barley);
• Map and develop watering points; sample
shallow wells for SSI; water reservoirs?

Home garden development
• The district is cereal-Livestock
dominated; very limited experience
in home garden farming;
• Major thrusts, improve nutrition and
income for women;
• Home garden development is a
knowledge-intensive process;
demands initial investment;
• Linking them to market through
homegardens?

Intensification Gradients of Home gardens

Improved Vegetation cover upstream

The project Outcomes:
• Generate knowledge on socio-economic factors affecting adoption
and effective use of climate adaptation interventions (land, water,
vegetation);
• Key incentives for collective action in adopting and promoting climate
adaptation interventions at Watershed scales. Key lessons will be
shared with the wider actors in the district and beyond;
• Strengthened extension capacity in organizing communities to serve
collective action and in identifying appropriate climate adaptation
interventions.
• Enhanced community adaptive capacity, through formal and informal
trainings, and reflecting on different production scenarios including
market opportunities , access to water etc.
• Joint Learning site for Wollo University, ARARI, ILRI, UNEP and other
players;
• Thinking Big; hoping to attract more joint investments