This poster was presented as part of the East African Learning Landscape Regional Knowledge Exchange, at the African Institute for Capacity Development at Jomo Kenyatta University on June 2-3, 2015. For more information, see: http://bit.ly/1KtnN0S

1. Landscape Profile
Problems before the Interventions
ERGI INTEGRATED WATERSHED
Community based Integrated Watershed Management
We acknowledge actors involved in Ergi Dialogue Workshop
It is located in Amhara National Regional State, Oromia Zone
Administration. The landscape configuration is degraded shrub hills
and agricultural lands in the upstream and wetlands in the
downstream with total area of 504 ha.
Actors: Initiative by SLMP project in 2013, Local District
Administration, Agriculture sector, Community Watershed
Team, Land, Water and Road sectors.
Population: 936 total population (201 households)
Agriculture system: Sorghum based mixed crop-livestock farming
system. (Sorghum, Teff and Chickpea; cattle,
sheep, and goat)
Ecosystems
 Land uses - crop, grazing, wetland and shrub & forest
 High soil erosion and degraded hillsides
 Loss of soil fertility
 Shortage of animal feed
 Flood hazard at foot slopes
 Low productivity and food insecurity
 Erratic rainfall variability
 High population density
o Bylaws for watershed planning and management
o Steering and Technical Committee at Woreda level
o Involvement of elders and religious leaders and
respecting social values
o Empowerment and leadership capacity of Watershed
Committee
o Joint planning of Kebele sectors and community
 Limited practice of landscape approach with respect to
linkage of upstream and downstream wetlands, social
services, biodiversity conservation and market integration
as elements a landscape
 Inadequate legal support to enforce bylaws
 Inadequate documentation of evidences & best practices
 Unemployment and landlessness of youth is on the rise
 Low level of diversified income sources for youths
 Inadequate strategies to develop sustainable fodder
production to balance demand and reduce wetland
pressure
 Unregulated water use – emerging irrigation in wetlands
 Transhumance
Institutions and Collaborations
 Bottom-up planning process – community driven
 Community agreed bylaws
 Community empowerment and ownership
 Practice EIA at micro-watershed scale
 Rehabilitated degraded hills and gullies
 High fodder biomass for animal feed & vegetation cover
 Controlled free grazing
 Increase groundwater recharge and shallow wells downstream &
increase crop productivity
 Integration of livestock management and NRM
 Youth based livelihood innovations
Successes and Best Practices
Next Actions
 Strengthen landscape approach - better upstream-
downstream linkage - wetland management; build
capacity of steering and technical committee
 Institutionalize Watershed Users’ Association
 Improve EIA activities and enhance role of Environmental
Protection to implement standards and regulations
 Monitoring of IWM impacts on biodiversity, hydrology,
productivity & livelihood improvement
Challenges
ERGI