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Abstract
This paper introduces and highlights some results of a multi-institutional collaborative
research project under implementation related to “Improved water and land management
in the Ethiopian highlands and its impact on downstream stakeholders dependent on the
Blue Nile”. In the Nile Basin, water from the Ethiopian highlands, particularly from the
Blue Nile (Abay), has in the past benefited downstream people in Sudan and Egypt in
different ways – agriculture, livestock, industry and electrical power. However, such free
benefits are now threatened due to dramatically changing land, water and livestock
management practices upstream. High population pressure, lack of alternative livelihood
opportunities and the slow pace of rural development are inducing deforestation,
overgrazing, land degradation and declining agricultural productivity. Poor water and
land management upstream reduces both potential runoff yields and the quality of water
reaching downstream. The result is a vicious cycle of poverty and food insecurity for
millions in the upstream; and poor water quality, heavy siltation, flooding, and poor
temporal water distribution in the downstream threatening livelihood and economies in
the downstream. It is widely recognized that improved water management in the Abay
Basin will significantly increase water availability for various stakeholders within the
basin. Key research questions raised in the project include: What are the successful
interventions that help improve productivity and reverse degradation? What are the
impacts downstream? What are the opportunities and constraints enhancing rural
livelihoods and food security? Focusing around these questions, intermediate results
related to meteorological, hydrological and physical based basin characterization,
methodologies for erosion and sediment modelling, water availability and access for
various production systems are presented. Synergies and complementarities with Nile
Basin shared vision and subsidiary action projects, particularly with the Eastern Nile are
also highlighted.