Current Capacity Building Initiatives in Ethiopia

for
Water Resources Development and Management

ABITI GETANEH GEBREMESKEL

Ministry of Water and Energy_ Ethiopia
P.O.Box 5744
abitigetaneh@yahoo.com
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia

1. Introduction
Ethiopia, officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of
Africa, and is the most populous landlocked country in the world. It is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Djibouti
and Somalia to the east, Sudan and South Sudan to the west, and Kenya to the south. Ethiopia is the second-
most populous nation on the African continent, with over 84,320,000 inhabitants, and the tenth largest by area,
occupying 1,100,000 km2. Its capital, Addis Ababa, is known as "the political capital of Africa."

Achieving broad-based, accelerated and sustained economic growth so as to eradicate poverty has been and is a
key objective of the Government of Ethiopia. The government has designed, and is implementing, strategies,
policies and plans to guide and manage the overall development of the country accordingly. The major emphasis
is on the water resources development.

Water is an expensive economic and social resource. Water availability in quantity and quality is limited in
space and time. It is the major input for an irrigation farm & hydropower development. Hence, water contributes
a lot to an increase in agricultural production and productivity. Water is also used as an input to the industrial
production. Ethiopian water resources and its geographical landscape provide a good opportunity for
hydropower generation. Water resource potential has direct relation with aquaculture like fishery development.
Though its development is so low these days, water resource also plays a conspicuous role for transport and
tourism service development. This indicates that the water sector serves to the large number of the economic
sectors in our country. Because water is used for drinking, accessing water at a reasonable distance at required
quantity will do an irreplaceable contribution for the creation of healthy and productive citizen. Therefore, we
can simply recognize economic growth and water contribution cannot separately be seen.

Water plays an eye-catching role to meet up the government vision to align the country along the middle-income
countries in 2025 and the country’s a yearly minimum 10.4% economic growth plan.

2. Water Sector Objective, Policies and Strategy

The MoWE (Ministry of Water and Energy) develops sector development strategies and policy, generalized
Water Resource Management and development strategies and policy Objectives are presented as follows

 Develop the countries water resources on equitable and sustainable way to assure highest economic and
social benefits;
 Bring about efficient utilization, and equitable water allocation and distribution embracing
sustainability of water resources through all inclusive and integrated water resource management plan
with effective water sharing principles;
  Mitigation and prevention of drought effects by efficiently and suitably developing and use of the water
resources in accordance with the countries strategic plan;
 Prevent and control flood disaster by taking sustainable, preventive, rehabilitative and other similar
measures;
 Sustainable prevention, conservation and development of water resources and its general environment;

2.1 Irrigation and Drainage Sub Sector

 Implement systems that help irrigation development works beneficial for long time and
sustainability;
 Develop and distribute standards, manuals and systems assuring that irrigation farms and systems
sustainable operation and maintenance are satisfactorily monitored and improved;
 Create appropriate conditions to develop medium and large scale irrigation; select low cost
technologies; develop strong contract administration and management capacity; strengthen private
and government contractors;
 Cost sharing of irrigation development costs like the hydropower and other sub-sectors; give
priority for multipurpose irrigation development projects;
 Search fund from other sources besides the government budget for medium and large scale
irrigation development projects;
 Create appropriate conditions to and support the private sector to participate on medium and large
scale irrigation development projects;
 Design projects to consider gender issues and focus on conditions that make women highest
beneficiaries on projects to be constructed;
 Draw and implement working procedures and systems for sustainability of finance sources and
feasibility of medium and large scale projects;

2.2 Hydropower Study and Design Sub Sector

 Update hydrological geographical / survey and mapping/, social, economic and environmental
information that serve for sustainable feasibility study of each selected electric generation areas;

 Integrated and successive assurance of study of hydro power generation projects whose feasibility
is assured to implement them as soon as fund is secured;

 Consider hydropower development projects inseparable and part to other multi sector
development projects so as to minimize the unit cost of production;

 Identify and fully record the specific features of the country’s hydropower potential and put in to
use these potentials; take measures that brings benefit;
 Encourage local consultants and contractors to participate in the design, construction and
management of hydropower generation;

 Provide appropriate training to the local staffs and strengthen the internal capacity to gradually
reduce dependence on external experts and build capacity at federal level in the following
streams:

 Study and design of medium and large scale hydropower development;

 License those who like to involve in hydropower development projects;
 Control water related constructions.

3. Water Resources Potential and Current Development in Ethiopia

Ethiopia has a huge water resources potential with surface water resources around 122 billion cubic meters per
annum and groundwater potential 36 billion cubic meters. The following table presents the major river basins
their catchment area, discharge, and annual runoff
Table. Surface Water Resources of Ethiopian River Basins
Catchments Annual Runoff Specific Discharge
No. River Basins 2 3)
Area(km ) (BM (l/s/ km2)
1 Abbay (Blue Nile) 199812 52.6 7.8
2 Awash 112700 4.6 1.4
3 Baro-Akobo 74100 23.6 9.7
4 Genale – Dawa 171050 5.8 1.2
5 Mereb 5700 0.26 3.2
6 Omo-Ghibe 78200 17.90 6.7
7 Rift Valley Lakes Basin 52740 5.60 3.4
8 Tekeze 89000 7.63 3.2
9 Wabe Shebele 200214 3.15 0.5
10 Denakil (Afar ) 74000 0.86 -
11 Ogaden 77100 0 -
12 Aysha 2200 0 -
1136816 122.00
Source: Ministry of Water Resources, water sector development programme2002-2016, 2002 and, review and
update of fifteen year water sector development program, vol.3

Fig. Major river basins of Ethiopia

3.1 Development Potentials & Planned Development Programs

The geographical location of Ethiopia and its endowment with favorable climate provides a relatively higher
amount of rainfall in the region. The primary characteristics of Ethiopia’s water resources are extreme inter-
annual and intra-annual rainfall variability, and the international nature of its most significant water resources.
The big and main water resources development problem in Ethiopia is the uneven spatial and temporal
occurrence and distribution. Between 80-90% of Ethiopia's water resources is found in the four river basins
namely, Abbay (Blue Nile), Tekeze, Baro Akobo, and Omo Gibe in the west and southwestern part of Ethiopia
where the population is no more than 30 to 40 per cent. Integrated development master plan study of 8 river
basins has been completed.

The three largest river basins (Abbay, Baro-Akobo, and Omo-Gibe) contribute 76 per cent of the total runoff
from a catchment area comprising only 32 percent of the total area of the country. Those three river basins have
much larger specific discharges than the other river basins. Their large runoff stems from the fact that the river
basins occupy the western and southwestern parts of Ethiopia, where the highest concentration of rainfall
occurs. The western parts of the country have a uni-modal rainfall starting in February/March and ending in
October/November. Bimodal rainfall seasons are also found in the eastern parts, with one major and one minor
season, whereas the bimodal season in the southern parts are more evenly distributed. The three eastern river
basins (Afar-Danakil, Aysha, and Ogaden) are the dry once. The Abbay, or Blue Nile, Basin contributes 62
percent of the annual average flow reaching Aswan. When combined with the Tekeze and the Baro-Akobo
Rivers, the total contribution from Ethiopia to the flow of the Nile at Aswan is 86 percent.

Fig Identified Hydropower & Irrigation Development sites

3.1.1 Irrigation Development

Estimates show that irrigable land potential of the country is around 5.3 million ha (3.7Mha from gravity-fed
surface water, 1.1Mha from groundwater and 0.5Mha from rainwater harvesting, and currently developed
irrigable land is around 640,000ha. In the GTP-2 it is planned to increase the developed irrigable land to 5
million ha
Fig . Current Irrigation Development Project (koga)

3.1.2 Hydropower Development

The country has a hydropower potential of 45,000MW. Until now it is able to produce around 2060MW .In the
GTP-1 (Growth and Transformation Plan -1) period the activities are undergoing to arrive at 10,000 MW
hydropower production capacities. In the GTP-2 it is planned to increase the hydropower production up to
15000MW from the hydropower potential.

Fig.3 Constructed Hydropower Dam (Tekeze Arch Dam)

4. Man Power Requirement

Strengthening institutional capacity is critical to implement the GTP policies, strategies and programs and there
by achieve satisfactory results. Apart from other existing, structural and institutional constraints, the country's
economic growth and social development are hindered by organizational capacity constraints. Government has
designed national programs, policies, and a strategy that strengthens and sustains the country’s planned
implementation capacity, institutionally and organizationally. This is a vital contribution to the on-going process
of development endeavors and democratization as well. The capability of civil servants, at federal, regional and
local levels and the private sector will be strengthened, and then can only be the desired development goals
achieved.

4.1 Objective

The objective of the capacity building initiatives are to train high level local professionals to fill the gap of
manpower need for the execution of the planned development programs in the sector their by to insure
sustainable development which could be manifested in the reduction of cost both for study and implementation.

4.2 Methods and Considerations

To identify the training fields and the number of trainees for the execution of the planned projects both in GTP 1
& GTP-2, assessment was made on the current development projects at various level in terms of execution
capacity (trained man power and supplies) as bench mark both for the private and public sector partners. The
assessment result indicates the current level of national professional input is 20% and supplies can be said nil.
The majority of identified gaps are listed as follows starting from Feasibility Study, Detail Design, Construction,
Construction Supervision, and Operation and Maintenance both for irrigation and hydropower development.
More specifically the identified gaps are summarized based on the water resources development directions as
follows

Irrigation development
 Feasibility Study & Detailed design
 Infrastructure development
 Water Administration
Hydropower Development
 Feasibility Study & Detailed design
 Infrastructure development
 Planning & Distributions
Groundwater Resources Development
 Feasibility Study & Detailed design
 Infrastructure development
 Monitoring & Administration
Generally on all Water resources Development
 Dam Construction Feasibility Study and Design
 Dam Construction Monitoring & Administration
 Geotechnical and Geophysical investigations (Studies)
 Grouting
 Dam Break Analysis
Water Resources Development input Supplies (Industrial out puts)
 Supplies required for irrigation Developments
 Supplies required for Hydropower Developments
 Supplies required for Groundwater Development
 Supplies required for Dam Construction

The identified fields of specializations were

No. Area of Specialization
1 Civil Engineering Specialization in Dam Engineering
2 Civil Engineering Specialization in Material Engineering
3 Civil Engineering Specialization in Grouting
4 Civil Engineering
5 Tunnel Technology
6 Civil works Drawing
7 Material Engineering
8 Cost Control Engineering
9 RCC Engineering
10 Quality Control & Assurance Engineering
11 Hydraulic Engineering Specialized in Dam Engineering
12 Hydraulic Engineering
13 Irrigation and Drainage Engineering / Irrigation Network Design Engineering
14 Hydrology
15 Geotechnical Engineering
16 Geotechnical Engineering Specialization in Grouting
17 Hydro-geology
18 Structural Geology
19 Seismic Engineering
20 Geophysicist (Geophysical Investigations)
21 Foundation Treatment of Hydraulic structures
 No. Area of Specialization
22 Electromechanical & Hydromecchanical Engineering
23 Electrical Engineering
24 Transmission Line Design
25 Substation Design Expert
26 Electrical works Drawing
27 Generation Operation Engineering
28 Distribution Design &Planning Engineering
29 Transmission Engineering
30 Substation Engineering
31 Specialization in Pumping Station/Major Pipeline
32 Drilling Engineering
33 Mechanical Engineering
34 Hydro steel structures
35 Turbines Design
36 Hydraulic Turbines
37 Hydro mechanical Drawing
38 Irrigation Agronomy
39 Power and Energy Economy
40 Software Engineering
41 Hardware Engineering
42 SCADA Hardware & Soft ware Engineering
43 System Operation Engineering

The above areas of specialization narrowed and regrouped in to

 Irrigation and Drainage engineering
 Hydraulic and Dam Engineering
 Hydrology and Hydro system engineering
 Hydropower Engineering
 Electric Power and Energy Engineering
 Mechanical Engineering (Hydraulic Turbines )
 Power &Energy Economics
 Electromechanical Engineering
 Drilling Engineering

Based on the identified and generalized field of specializations national institutions have been identified and
consecutive consultation was held with the institutions including other respective stakeholders. The Identified
Higher Learning Institutions are:

 Addis Ababa University /Institute of Technology

 ArbaMinch University
 Adama University
 Bahir Dar University
 Hawassa University
 Haromaya University
 Jimma University
 Mekelle University

4.3 Curriculum Design



Even if curriculum design is the responsibilities of higher learning institutes, the industry presents to the
university the profile of trained engineers as per the assessment observed. Base on these universities presents
their curriculum with certain modification if they have initially or newly prepared. A national workshop was
conducted including the private sector, the industry and universities. Finally universities are selected for certain
type of specialization for finalizing the curriculum as per the comment provided to them during the workshop
and to be shared to other universities for implementation.
4.4 External Relation

To maintain the quality of the trainees and for technology and knowledge transfer twinning agreement with
international universities via universities alone or with rough the industry was tried.

References

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. 2010 Growth and Transformation Plan 2010/11 – 2014/15

Ministry of Water Resources_FDRE, water sector development programme2002-2016, 2002 and, review and
update of fifteen year water sector development program, vol.3

Ministry of Water Resources_FDRE 1999. Ethiopian Water Resources Management Policy

Different Integrated Development Master plan studies

Author

A.G. Gebremeskel graduated in Agriculture (Irrigation Agronomy) and Remote Sensing and GIS from the Haromaya
University-Ethiopia and Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation center the Netherlands respectively. He worked
both for the government and private institution especially in feasibility and detailed design studies of irrigation projects in
both fields of specializations. Currently working at the Ministry of Water and Energy _Ethiopia as Director for Research and
Development Directorate.