Synthesis of Existing Knowledge and Experience on the Provision of ...

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• Make better use <strong>of</strong> existing research to inform water development planning <strong>and</strong>implementation <strong>and</strong> promote knowledge sharing between practitioners <strong>and</strong> projects.This can be done through establishing learning <strong>and</strong> practice alliances.• Create an enabling environment where local groups representative <strong>of</strong> water users in agiven area have the capacity <strong>and</strong> authority to construct, operate, manage, <strong>and</strong> maintainwater points, effectively making them implementers rather than merely recipients <strong>of</strong>development.• Promote the consortium approach to water development among development <strong>and</strong>humanitarian practitioners. This approach can help harmonize activities <strong>and</strong> has beenviewed favourably by agencies in the water development sector in Ethiopia.Alternatively, link development <strong>and</strong> humanitarian practitioners to existing (orpotential) technical working groups that h<strong>and</strong>le water issues, such as the NaturalResources Management Technical Working Group.16
Section 1. Introduction1.1 IntroductionWater scarcity is a perennial challenge in Ethiopia’s pastoral regions. For centuries, pastoralists havedeveloped <strong>and</strong> managed water resources, harvesting rainwater, managing access to rivers <strong>and</strong>groundwater-fed permanent water sources. Forty years ago, non-pastoral actors – namelygovernment, donors, <strong>and</strong> development organizations – have joined in the effort, especially followingthe major drought in 1973, <strong>and</strong> have become active participants in the water development arena inthese regions ever since.As much as water development can help address water deficits in the short term, it is increasinglyrecognized that it has the potential to bring lasting change in the long term – both positive <strong>and</strong>negative. For example, h<strong>and</strong> dug wells along rivers give communities much needed access to cleanwater, while oversized ponds encourage sedentarization <strong>and</strong> overconcentration <strong>of</strong> people <strong>and</strong>livestock in potentially fragile l<strong>and</strong>scapes. <strong>Experience</strong> over the last forty years indicates that waterdevelopment divorced from an in-depth underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> pastoral livelihoods, <strong>and</strong> the unique l<strong>and</strong>use <strong>and</strong> customary natural resource management strategies central to these livelihoods, cancompromise development 5 in pastoral regions. Having said this, it is recognized that pastoralists arenot simply recipients <strong>of</strong> development, but are also drivers <strong>of</strong> change themselves. Waterdevelopments in Somali region are a case in point, where the proliferation <strong>of</strong> birkado 6 was originallyinstigated by Somali pastoralists in the 1960s. The negative consequences <strong>of</strong> birkado for rangel<strong>and</strong>health <strong>and</strong> mobile pastoral livelihoods have today been recognized by pastoralists <strong>and</strong> developmentpartners <strong>and</strong> steps taken at community level to begin to address these negative aspects (Gomes,2006) in some parts <strong>of</strong> the country. In other parts, birkado continue to dominate the waterdevelopment options list among development agencies.This paper looks at experience in the water development arena in pastoral regions <strong>of</strong> Ethiopia overthe last forty years; ever since development organizations <strong>and</strong> government began taking an activeinterest in the dryl<strong>and</strong>s. It presents an overview <strong>of</strong> past <strong>and</strong> current approaches to waterdevelopment by different actors to determine how thinking may have changed over time. It also aimsto identify opportunities on which to build, which can enhance the positive effects <strong>of</strong> waterdevelopment for lives <strong>and</strong> livelihoods.1.2 Rationale <strong>and</strong> purpose <strong>of</strong> the reportAware <strong>of</strong> the lack <strong>of</strong> broad strategy documents to guide implementers in the pastoral areas <strong>of</strong>Ethiopia, a group <strong>of</strong> interested partners came together to prepare a synthesis <strong>of</strong> current policy <strong>and</strong>practice specifically focused on water development to identify the lessons learned to-date. Thesepartners included the RiPPLE Programme, funded by UKaid from the Department for InternationalDevelopment DFID through the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), Save the Children/US (SC-US) working through the USAID funded Enhanced Livelihoods in Southern Ethiopia/EnhancedLivelihoods in the M<strong>and</strong>era Triangle (ELSE/ELMT) programme, <strong>and</strong> CARE Ethiopia, working throughthe Howard G. Buffet Foundation funded Global Water Initiative. The partners intend for this report5 ‘Development’ here is meant as per Amartya Sen’s definition; a model which goes beyond fulfilling basic physical <strong>and</strong>monetary needs – freedom from poverty – to include exp<strong>and</strong>ing people’s freedom to do the best for themselves <strong>and</strong> theirsocieties – freedom to take beneficial action (as described in UN OCHA Pastoralist Communication Initiative’s ‘The Future<strong>of</strong> Pastoralism’, 2007).6 Cement lined underground cisterns.17
Page 1 and 2: Synthesis
Page 4 and 5: TABLE OF CONTENTSLIST OF ACRONYMS..
Page 6 and 7: ACKNOWLEDGMENTSI would like to exte
Page 8 and 9: LIST OF ACRONYMSACDI/VOCAACFAFDCDDC
Page 10 and 11: EXECUTIVE SUMMARYWater development
Page 12 and 13: understanding <str
Page 14 and 15: Agreed upon guidelines for water de
Page 18 and 19: to inform their own work an
Page 20 and 21: Within pastoral areas, it is recogn
Page 23 and 24: Section 2. Overview of</str
Page 25 and 26: Dohrn, 2006). Spatially variable ra
Page 27 and 28: The following broad overview touche
Page 29 and 30: In areas of adequa
Page 31 and 32: observed response was for individua
Page 33 and 34: Specific to water development, seve
Page 35 and 36: Section 3. Water development todayT
Page 37 and 38: Eliciting payments for water from l
Page 39 and 40: ureaus 25 . The ministry’s interv
Page 41 and 42: National policy paints a conflictin
Page 43 and 44: will be given to pastoralists to en
Page 45 and 46: Water supplyGovernance and<
Page 47 and 48: vulnerable to conversion for other
Page 49 and 50: • Agro-pastoralists’ priorities
Page 51 and 52: Although the WSDP principles are se
Page 53 and 54: The Universal Access ProgramThe Uni
Page 55 and 56: • Help ensure that public works d
Page 57 and 58: However, the development model for
Page 59 and 60: Figure 4: Proposed pilot la
Page 61 and 62: Many international and</str
Page 63 and 64: Furthermore, attention is given to
Page 65 and 66: CARE International, under the GWI,
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and traditional me
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• Understand exi
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4.2 Key observations in the water d
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epresent a firm attempt to preserve
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learning from NGO experiences in Bo
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However, there are currently no spe
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4.3 Conclusion, ways forward <stron
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In sum, pastoralism as a livelihood
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• Water interventions selected sh
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• Promote effective participation
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Gebre-Mariam, A. (1982). Organizati
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Schimann P. and Ph
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