ADF Grants Ethiopia Over $13m For Water Development Project in Ethiopia

Posted by Eric Ojo African News, Business News, Latest Headlines Thursday, December 1st, 2022

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – African Development Fund (ADF), the concessional lending arm for the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, has approved $13.95 million grant for the implementation of Borana Resilient Water Development for Improved livelihoods programme in Ethiopia

Administered by the AfDB, the ADF comprises 32 contributing countries and benefits 37 countries. The 37 ADF-eligible countries include those that are increasing their economic capacities and heading toward becoming the new emerging markets – as well as those that remain fragile and need special assistance for basic levels of service delivery.

The ADF contributes to poverty reduction and economic and social development in the least developed African countries by providing concessional funding for projects and programs, as well as technical assistance for studies and capacity-building activities.

The Fund was approved for the Government of Ethiopia to implement the first phase of a livelihood improvement project for pastoralist communities in country’s drylands.

The Borana Resilient Water Development for Improved Livelihoods Program will enhance access to climate-resilient, gender-sensitive integrated and sustainable water and sanitation services. Phase one of the program will focus on developing 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 the climate resilience of the catchments. It will also design a strategy and approach to involve local communities, and carry out a gender climate vulnerability and resilience assessment as an integral part of climate adaptation.

The scheme will bolster access to water supplies in Elweya, Dubluk, and Yabel districts, covering 62 rural villages and 12 towns with an estimated population of 308,576 people—half of them women – and 975,750 livestock.

Director of Water Development and Sanitation at the AfDB , Osward Chanda said the Bank’s support is a coordinated response with the Government of Ethiopia to mitigate water, sanitation and climate challenges, develop sustainable water structures, and improve socioeconomic outcomes in Borana”.

Phase one of the programme 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 last 15 years, Ethiopia has suffered eight major droughts with adverse consequences for its economy and the livelihoods of its people, resulting in forced migration and displacement of humans and livestock. Droughts in the Borana area have been linked to increased violent conflict and boundary disputes, and unsafe drinking water, and inadequate sanitation, which remain critical health concerns in the Ethiopian lowlands.

The Borana programme aligns with the Bank’s Strategy for Addressing Fragility and Building Resilience in Africa as well as its Gender Strategy, Jobs for Youth in Africa Strategy, Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Action Plan, and the Bank’s Climate Change Policy which seeks to invest in programs which boost climate resilience and adaptation.