Ethiopia: African Development Fund Approves $13.95 Million Grant for Borana Resilient Water Development for Improved Livelihoods Program | African Development Bank

The African Development Fund Board of Directors has approved a $13.95 million grant to the government of Ethiopia to implement the first phase of a project to improve the livelihoods of pastoralist communities in Ethiopia’s arid regions.

The Borana Resilient Water Development for Improved Livelihoods program will improve access to climate resilient, gender sensitive integrated and sustainable water and sanitation services. Phase one of the program will focus on the development of well field infrastructure and a transmission pipeline to a storage tank.

The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) will contribute €300,000 to the program to strengthen adaptation and resilience, under the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, a partnership with the African Development Bank.

GCA will provide technical assistance for the development of an in-depth understanding of climate-related risks to improve watershed climate resilience. It will also design a strategy and approach to engage local communities, and conduct an assessment of the climate vulnerability and resilience of men and women as an integral part of climate adaptation.

The scheme will strengthen access to water supply in Elweya, Dubluk and Yabel districts, in 62 rural villages and 12 towns with an estimated population of 308,576 people – half of which are women – and 975,750 livestock.

Osward Chanda, Director of Water Development and Sanitation at the African Development Bank, said: “The bank’s support is a coordinated response with the government of Ethiopia to mitigate water, sanitation and climate challenges, build sustainable water structures develop and improve socio-economic outcomes in Borana.”

Phase one of the program will be implemented over four years. The Borana Resilient Water Development for Improved Livelihoods program will lead to improved health outcomes, nutrition and food security.

In the past 15 years, Ethiopia has experienced eight major droughts with adverse effects on the economy and livelihoods of the population, resulting in forced migration and displacement of people and livestock. Droughts in the Borana region have been linked to increased violent conflict and border disputes, unsafe drinking water and inadequate sanitation, which remain critical health problems in the Ethiopian lowlands.

The Borana program aligns with the Bank’s strategy for tackling vulnerability and building resilience in Africa, as well as its Gender Strategy, Youth Jobs Strategy in Africa, Multi-Sectoral Action Plan on Nutrition and the Bank’s Climate Change Policy , which aims to invest in programs that stimulate climate resilience and adaptation.