Various projects in the Awash River Basin address the issue of improved water management, improved water quality and improved access to water in the basin. Several actors are involved, such as the Ethiopian government, companies, water authorities and NGOs. The ultimate aim of these projects is for the inhabitants of the Awash River Basin to benefit from the available water and for the eco-system of the river to recover.
WaterPricing
The project ‘WaterPricing’ is carried out in the Awash sub-basin around the Awash river from 2018 until 2024. The project is particularly aimed at more efficient use and fairer distribution of the available water. The water supply in the river decreases sharply because more and more water is drained by industry and agriculture. As a result, the river may run dry downstream.
Blue Deal Awash Partnership Program
In the Blue Deal Awash Partnership Program Dutch Water Authorities (DWA) works together with the Ethiopian government to improve water management in the basin of the Awash river. DWA supports the government to collaborate more effectively in executing the basin management plan, information management, and tackling pollution by industries. The Blue Deal program started in 2019 and ends in 2030.
Water Governance Implementation Program
The Awash Basin Development Office was very much focused on the technical approach. Their orientation was local instead of basin wide. In the Water Governance Implementation Program Dutch Water Authorities assisted the Awash Basin Development Office in better execution of its tasks. The project ran from 2015 – 2018.